Hiddink's arrival will up the stakes for Chelsea match

By cphilpotts

WHAT a game this weekend promises to bring for all Aston Villa fans.

Chelsea at home for every team is a game that stands out but, for Villa this season, it stands out more than most.

Both clubs are sitting inside the top four of the table at the moment and to the surprise of many it is Villa who sit the highest.

Currently placed in third spot, Martin O'Neill's men have shown true character this season and have produced the kind of performances that have led many to believe that the monopoly of the Champions League places could be brought to an end.

That is why the game at the weekend is such a big one.

If the Villa get the result that they want then they will have put themselves in a commanding position for not just fourth spot but for third place also.

They will send a message to the big clubs that they are not settling on just scraping into the top four places, they are looking to finish as high as they can.

It will be a difficult game for the Villa, though, as Chelsea of course will have a new manager on Saturday.

That is the worst thing that can happen before you are about to play a team as you can guarantee that all their players will be looking to impress.

Players like Didier Drogba and the like who have not shown what they are truly capable of so far this year will be thinking I have something to prove here now.

That makes a tough game even harder and will mean that some of the Villa players will need to really be on top of their game.

Players like Zat Knight and Curtis Davies will need to shine especially.

From all accounts the two of them did not have the best of times last week against Everton in the FA Cup defeat, but that is in the past now.

I know that with Martin Laursen out Zat will be called upon a lot in games like this, and now he has to prove that he can handle it.

I mention Zat because I heard he was talking in the media this week about Villa looking to finish in the top three this season.

That was good for the fans to hear as it lets them know how confident the side are at the moment and how much belief they have that they are good enough to do what they want to do.

But, in the same breath, it could also have been construed as a bad move as it could have acted as even more of a motivating factor for those teams around the Villa.

It is always difficult as you want to let the fans know you are confident but in the same breath you do not want to give other teams a reason to try any harder than they would do normally.