A well-rested Chelsea travel north to face a Man City side reeling from their midweek Champions League defeat to French champions PSG in what could be a pivotal game for both club’s European ambitions.
By Alex Roberts
Pep Guardiola’s boys went 2-0 up against the Parisians before completely capitulating, conceding four goals in the final 35 minutes, leaving them on the brink of elimination from Europe’s elite club competition.
Chelsea had no such worries, but that doesn’t mean Enzo Maresca will have taken his eye off the ball… literally. The West London club impressed against City in their first game under the Italian but were powerless to resist their overwhelming firepower. They’ll want revenge this time out.
The prodigal son makes an impressive return
It’s almost as if Trevoh Chalobah never left, or at least he shouldn’t have. The centre-back absolutely bossed it in their 3-1 win against Wolves in their previous Premier League fixture.
Chalobah ended the win over Wolves with a 96% pass accuracy rate, two chances created, and an assist: winning the Player of the Match award in his first game back since being recalled from his loan at Crystal Palace.
Yes, those are all attacking stats, because, honestly, he didn’t have to do that much at the back, and when he did, he was as calm as ever. The academy star may have saved his boyhood club millions.
A flurry of new Man City signings
City have spent big in the January transfer window, bringing Vitor Reis, Abdukodir Khusanov, and now Omar Marmoush to the club as they seek to refresh an aging squad before any ruling is made regarding those ominous 115 charges.
The current champions are confusing enough as it is, and should Guardiola decide to give his three new boys their debuts against Chelsea, it could throw a serious spanner in the works for Maresca.
Marmoush in particular could cause problems. The forward played at a higher level than the other two, scoring 20 goals and providing 13 assists in the first half of the season at Eintracht Frankfurt.
Over a billion spent and still in need of a goalkeeper
The Stamford Bridge faithful aren’t starting to lose faith in Robert Sánchez, they lost it some time ago. Maresca continues to back him, despite a number of high-profile mistakes, including the one against Wolves, but his hands may be tied in the near future.
Only Ipswich goalkeeper Arijanet Muric has made more mistakes leading to goals in the Premier League this season with five, one more than Chelsea’s Sánchez. A worrying stat for a side trying to secure a top four spot.
Being a goalkeeper is hard, it’s arguably the most confidence-based position in the sport, and that will make it even harder for Sánchez to redeem himself in the eyes of the Chelsea fans.
Starting to worry about Bernardo
Bernardo Silva has been one of City’s most consistent players over the last few years, but a string of poor performances against the big boys this season should be cause for concern for both Guardiola and the fans.
It was a miracle he wasn’t brought off in the defeat to PSG, losing seven duels, more than any other player on the pitch. The struggle was as clear as day on his face after Ousmane Dembélé nut-megged him before smashing the crossbar.
All things must come to an end, and it’s incredible he’s managed to play at such a high level for such a prolonged period of time, but he may be another aging star City look to move on in the not-so-distant future.
Prediction
City and Chelsea are two of the Premier League’s more unpredictable sides this season, it’s hard to determine which version will turn up for any given game. We’re going to go with a 3-1 win to City, but don’t hold us to it!
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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