Jose Mourinho's men lead the Premier League by three points despite being held to a draw by Manchester City on Sunday, while their opponents are also flying high.
Chelsea will be aiming to preserve their unbeaten start to the Premier League season when they welcome Aston Villa to Stamford Bridge on Saturday.Jose Mourinho's men lead the top flight by three points despite being pegged back by former talisman Frank Lampard against Manchester City on Sunday, having taken maximum points from their previous four matches.
A much-changed Blues side was pushed hard by Bolton Wanderers in the League Cup on Wednesday but Mourinho is set to restore his big names to the starting lineup, with Diego Costa in particular hoping to continue his own blistering start to life in the Premier League.
"I had a great time at Villa. I owe a lot to them, they brought me through and I had a great time, so I'm looking forward to it," Cahill told Chelsea's official website.
"They've had a great start to the season, apart from their last result, so it's going to be another tough test for us.
"At the moment we're unbeaten, we're going well and we should have confidence, especially playing in front of our own fans at Stamford Bridge."
Chelsea could welcome back Ramires (groin), while Villa look set to have a host of players back at full fitness after recovering from illness.
However, manager Paul Lambert confirmed on Thursday that Ron Vlaar is "really struggling" for Saturday's game due to a calf problem, while long-term absentees Christian Benteke (Achilles) and Libor Kozak (leg) remain out of action.
Villa suffered their first top-flight defeat of the campaign against Arsenal last weekend after a virus had swept through the club's training ground.
Ashley Westwood, Nathan Baker and Darren Bent all missed out on the 3-0 defeat at Villa Park as a result, while Andreas Weimann was able to play despite feeling unwell.
Three goals in quick succession after the half-hour mark stunned Villa and there was no way back as they were brought back down to earth.
Lambert's men face another stern test this weekend, but they beat Chelsea 1-0 the last time the two sides met courtesy of Fabian Delph's late goal in a dramatic game that also saw Brazil duo Willian and Ramires sent off.
And midfielder Westwood feels Villa can again cause problems for the London club this weekend.
"Last year we went there in the middle of a tough run of games, we played them in midweek and we thought we should have got something out of the game," he told the Birmingham Mail, referring to a 2-1 defeat in west London.
"We were unlucky then, but we’ll go there this year with confidence again, just as we did [in the 1-0 win] against Liverpool at Anfield.
"If we play like we did last year at Stamford Bridge, going there and unsettling them and taking them away from their game, then we can hit them with Gabby [Agbonlahor] and the other quick players we have up front."
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