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It simply cannot continue. It makes no sense for it to persist. Yet, persist it does.

A Record-Chasing Triumph Defying Expectations

The Claret and Blue army arrived at the weekend's Premier League clash at Chelsea aiming for a historic record of eleven consecutive wins, matching runs set in the distant past. For much of the match, this feat seemed highly unlikely, as the hosts controlled proceedings, secured the lead, and might have added several more. But, Chelsea are vulnerability with a lead, especially at home, while Villa have cultivated a remarkable knack of securing wins on the road after falling behind.

First, the striker leveled the scores, the ball ricocheting in off his shin and the post after his first effort was saved by Robert Sánchez. Later on, he nodded in the winner with a deft header. This marked just his fourth and fifth league goals of the season. The forward might believe a bit of luck was overdue, and there's no question the equalizing goal involved a significant element of good fortune. At the moment, however, fortune is favoring Villa.

The Numbers Of an Unlikely Streak

Nine of these eleven straight wins were by a single goal. They have managed a clean sheet in only one of those matches. Their underlying metrics have been superior in only six of those encounters, and in a couple of those, the advantage was 0.2 or less. Their last five road Premier League victories have all come from behind. This formula seems unsustainable, yet observers have been claiming that for weeks, and Villa continue winning. The central question is whether their results will eventually align with their performances or if their level of play can improve to match the points haul.

This seems unsustainable be possible, but everybody's been stating that for weeks and Villa keep on winning.

A Core Characteristic: Resilience

Fighting back is not merely a feature of the current campaign. Over the past 3 seasons, no team has gained more points from losing positions than Villa's fifty-four; Eighteen of those have been secured this term, fifty percent more than the next best team, Sunderland. This season, Villa players from the bench have scored nine goals. Two key observations can be made about Villa under Unai Emery.

• First, they possess a deep-rooted self-belief that means no deficit ever feels beyond them. This is, to an extent, self-perpetuating: the more they achieve comebacks, the more they believe they can do it once more.
• Secondly, Emery has proven exceptionally skilled at changing games through his use of the bench.

A Masterful Change

While Chelsea won the xG battle 2.1-1.4, Villa were the dominant force from the moment, around the hour mark, when Emery executed a triple substitution. Ollie Watkins came on for Donyell Malen, who had struggled with few chances. Suddenly, the ball was held up better, and Watkins's runs in behind caused problems. Onana and Sancho also entered, bolstering the center and adding the width they had eschewed earlier.

The Blues registered 10 shots to Villa's zero before the substitutions; afterwards, Villa had 11 chances to Chelsea's 4. By the final whistle, Villa were in control and could have won by a greater margin. Not for the first time, Chelsea boss Maresca seemed unable to react as the game slipped away; the impression remains that he is better at devising a tactical plan with time to prepare than adapting in the moment.

Moment of Magic

Villa have cultivated a happy habit of players producing pieces of sensational quality to turn games. Rogers has scored crucial goals at Leeds, West Ham, and against Manchester United. The image of him shifting the ball onto his right foot and whipping a finish into the top corner has become a seasonal theme. It was Malen who transformed the game from the bench at Leeds. Watkins swung the game at Stamford Bridge. The contributions of players such as Ezri Konsa and Viktor Lindelof on Saturday were key. At present, it's not always the entire team playing brilliantly, but sufficient players within it stepping up to secure the victories.

The Road Ahead

Can they keep going? They now sit three points behind Arsenal, and as the season approaches its midway point, they must be viewed as part of the title race, certainly more so than club world champions Chelsea or defending champions Liverpool. The upcoming away fixture at Arsenal will be a significant test of that claim. Villa defeated Arsenal earlier this month, a match in which they not only had better the xG but registered an xG 40% higher than any other side has achieved against Arsenal in the league this term.

The Gunners have since put together their own run of narrow victories, winning 3 in a row without ever being entirely convincing. Tuesday will be a challenge for both sides – and if Villa win a twelfth game in a row, it would become almost impossible to deny their championship pedigree.