Chelsea handed major Champions League qualification twist as brutal injury blow revealed

Chelsea's Champions League qualification rivals Aston Villa have seen their hopes of a top-five finish suffer a major blow with Youri Tielemans said to have picked up an injury.

With three games remaining, five teams are locked in an intense battle to secure Champions League football for next season. Manchester City are currently the most likely to finish third as they sit on 64 points, only three behind second-placed Arsenal.

Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa come next on 61 and 60, respectively, and therefore as things stand, Unai Emery's side will have to settle for a spot in the Europa League.

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Their 1-0 victory over Fulham this past weekend kept them in the race with a header from Tielemans sealing the win. The Belgian has predominantly been used in a deeper midfield role but has been used to great effect further forward in recent weeks.

Including his goal at Villa Park last weekend, Tielemans has managed four goal contributions in his last five games which now places him on 15 for the season in all competitions. However, Emery will have to navigate games against Bournemouth and Tottenham without him - alongside the absence of Marcus Rashford.

According to the , the 28-year-old has suffered a muscle injury and though there is some hope he can return on the final day against Manchester United, there are fears that his season is over.

Following Villa's impressive January recruitment, Emery has options to replace him with Jacob Ramsey, Leon Bailey and Donyell Malen all hoping for a prolonged chance.

Nonetheless, this is a potentially huge blow for Villa and thus it will likely come as a boost to Chelsea. With only one of the five teams set to miss out, it does look increasingly likely that will be Villa.

The Blues will undoubtedly play a huge role in deciding the final standings however, n with a potential Conference League final a few days later.