In December 2016, Chelsea visited Manchester City and turned in a performance that spiked interest.
The Blues, having fallen behind, found a foothold in the game, got back on level terms and were then meticulous in besting their opponents on the break. It was a display packed with composure, determination, and class. One that rubber-stamped their credentials as Premier League title favourites and eventual winners.
This weekend you sense City, this time making the trip to the capital to face the holders, will want to put in a comparatively complete “these lads are the business” sort of display.
Of course, Pep Guardiola’s side have been doing that to a degree this season, with 24 goals scored and one conceded in their last six matches. City have risen to every challenge and showcased attacking football as good as English football has seen in many years in those victories.
That’s significant, though a win at the home of the resurgent champions would significant. Because to beat Chelsea a steel and solidity—traits that have pulsed through previous winners of this competition—need to be exhibited as well as an offensive verve.
Chelsea have them attributes in spades. We saw them manifest in midweek too, when the Blues were exceptional in a 2-1 win at Atletico Madrid. That victory, and the nature of the victory thanks to Michy Batshuayi’s last-gasp winner will give Antonio Conte’s side massive impetus heading into this one.
That momentum may yet be offset by a degree of jadedness. Conte was livid in his post-match press conference at the Wanda Metropolitano on Wednesday, insisting this showdown with City should have been played on Sunday instead of Saturday tea time, with the team arriving back in London from Madrid in the small hours of Thursday morning.
A dismayed Chelsea boss said that as a consequence of this scheduling he will pick his team “one or two hours before” the match starts. He said they felt “penalized.”
City, by contrast, enjoyed a relatively routine win against Shakhtar Donetsk on home soil in the Champions League and will have had much more time to prepare for this fixture. Given the scrupulous detail, both of these coaches go into in terms of their tactical blueprints, that extra time can be key.
Even so, there are plenty of footballers who will take to the field on Saturday who possess the capability of altering the course of a match with a swing of a foot.
For the hosts, Alvaro Morata has hit the ground running since his summer switch from Real Madrid and has traits to his game to unsettle a City defence that’s been brittle at times under Guardiola. The Spain striker has seven goals in eight games and encouragingly for the Blues, Eden Hazard was back at full tilt against Atletico on Wednesday too.
City probably have even more game changers. In Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus, they boast natural goalscorers, in Leroy Sane and Raheem Sterling they have productive and dynamic wide players, while David Silva, Kevin De Bruyne and Bernardo Silva are a creative stable that any manager of any team would be envious of.
Expect the visitors to be on the front foot here, as they know no other way of playing under Guardiola. That’ll potentially play into the hands of the Blues, though the depth on the City bench paired with physical effort that would have been expended in the win over Atletico for Chelsea should see City to an important win.
Prediction: Chelsea 1-2 Manchester City
Tips
Manchester City to win (7/5 Coral)
Manchester City to win and both teams to score (7/2 Betfair)
Draw half-time/Manchester City full-time (11/2 Bet365)
Calculators
