Joao Pedro treble helps Chelsea close gap on fourth-placed Villa

Joao Pedro scored a hat-trick as Chelsea boosted their Champions League qualification hopes with a handsome 4-1 win at Aston Villa.

Pedro’s first Premier League treble saw Liam Rosenior’s side climb into the top five and move just three points behind a faltering Villa side in fourth.

Cole Palmer also scored on a memorable night for the Blues, who showed spirit to come from behind after Douglas Luiz’s opener.

It was by far the best performance of Rosenior’s two months in charge and they will approach the remainder of the season with confidence.

When Luiz struck inside three minutes, Villa had high hopes of taking a huge step towards securing their own Champions League ambitions but their night turned sour.

They have now won just one of their last six games and are in real danger of slipping out of contention for a place in next season’s most prestigious club competition.

And Unai Emery’s men are looking increasingly like they will need to win the Europa League as their route into it.

Chelsea boss Rosenior decided to drop goalkeeper Robert Sanchez after a difficult time against Arsenal on Sunday and replaced him with Filip Jorgensen.

And the Dane was picking the ball out of the net after just 150 seconds as Villa made a flying start.

Leon Bailey did well down the right and his cutback was dummied by Ollie Watkins, allowing Luiz to flick home his first goal of his second spell at Villa Park.

Chelsea responded well and Villa needed Emiliano Martinez’s flying save to keep out Pedro’s header before Palmer then forced the Argentinian into another save with a shot from distance.

But Villa should have doubled their lead in the 23rd minute. Martinez kicked the ball long, Chelsea defender Wesley Fofana fell over looking for a