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Chelsea and Aston Villa couldn't break the deadlock in their FA Cup fourth-round match, ending in a 0-0 draw on Friday, January 26. This means they will have to play again at Villa Park to see who moves to the next round. However, the goalless draw at Stamford Bridge drew reactions from fans.
The match had a moment of controversy early on. Blues debutant Alfie Gilchrist tried to block a shot, and the ball hit Douglas Luiz before looping into the net. But, after a VAR check, it turned out the ball hit the Villa midfielder's hand, so the goal didn't count.
Aston Villa's goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez was on fire in the first half. He stopped shots from Noni Madueke and Cole Palmer and made an important save to keep out a deflection from Alex Moreno.
Villa tried hard to get a goal late in the game. Moussa Diaby, Ollie Watkins, and Matty Cash all had their chances, but Chelsea goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic kept them out.
After the goalless game, fans shared their thoughts on social media, with one surprised at the eventual outcome:
"Wtf did I just watch"
Another reserved praise for Thiago Silva's defensive performance:
"Thiago Silva deserves another contract"
Here is a selection of their posts:
Another fan demanded:
A fan took issue with the manager:
Another fan was not pleased with the players:
Fans praised the Blues goalkeeper:
Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino reserves praise for Emiliano Martinez who shone for Villa
Chelsea and Aston Villa ended up with a 0-0 draw, and the Blues coach Mauricio Pochettino had high praise for Villa's goalie Emiliano Martinez. The World Cup winner put on a daring performance on the night, making five saves to stop the Blues from finding a goal.
Pochettino said to the journalists afterward (via The Independent):
“This type of games are very even. When you face a team like Aston Villa, always it’s difficult. We didn’t score but we created chances. I trust and believe in my players playing this way, we are going to score. We came from Tuesday, we scored six so today should be good. But their keeper is an amazing keeper, he’s really good. Sometimes you need some luck to score.”
This game marks the third time in a row that the Blues have failed to find the net against Villa and their rock of a goalkeeper at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea may have enjoyed a goal fiesta in the Carabao Cup, where they beat Middlesbrough 6-1, but it did not translate to this hard-fought draw.
