Youri Tielemans repaired Chelsea in the sights of Aston Villa and said that ending above the blues will lead his club back to the Champions League.
The Belgian International is of the opinion that the men of Topping Enzo Maresca Will Villa are eligible for the most important competition of European football for the second consecutive season. Despite a run of five games without a victory, the side of Unai Emery is only five points of fourth place.
Chelsea is one of the teams that lie in front of them and Tielemans believes that if they can overhaul the southwestern Londoners, a route will appear back to the large table.
He said: “Chelsea is right in front of us. We want to compete with them. Our performance against Liverpool was really good. We had many chances against the end.
“We were very good. We competed for every ball and Chelsea are a big opponent for us because we want to be where they are. We want to be close to them – for them – to get to the Champions League and to realize our ambitions.
“We have to believe. We are still in the race. We still have many games left, but we just have to win them. “
Villa expected to take more from games with Ipswich Town, Wolves and West Ham. Two points of those three luminaires left them in the ninth and follows the peloton.
But Tielemans saw enough against Liverpool to suggest that Villa is back on track.
He added: “It was difficult against Liverpool – but we just have to continue that. We fought very well, creating opportunities – especially towards the end – and a point is a point.
“The draw against Ipswich was frustrating. They defended very well. When we analyzed the game afterwards, I am still looking for a reason why we didn't win. Their keeper also had a worldie.
“We know we can do better, but I think we can be satisfied with the performance we have shown against Liverpool.”
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