Man City Record Title Hunt Gets Chelsea Test

Manchester City’s ambition to become the first club to win four Premier League titles in a row will face another test today as Pep Guardiola’s men welcome Chelsea to the Emirate Stadium. Both sides could not be separated when they met in the reverse fixture in an eight-goal thriller. Though the Citizens is highly favoured in today’s encounter, it is expected to be scintillating

Three months on from their riveting 4-4 draw at Stamford Bridge, Manchester City and Chelsea renew acquaintances at the Etihad Stadium for a Premier League showdown this evening.

While the Citizens endeavour to chase down Liverpool at the summit, their West London counterparts are seeking to boost their hopes of securing a top-seven finish.

Fixtures continue to come thick and fast for Man City as they continue their pursuit of another historic treble, but Pep Guardiola’s men have had few problems establishing another one of their trademark winning runs during a crucial period in the second half of the campaign.

Indeed, the Citizens have won each of their last 11 matches across all tournaments, a run which began with success at the Club World Cup in mid-December and was most recently extended courtesy of a 3-1 away victory over Copenhagen in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Tuesday.

Goals from Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva and Phil Foden ensured that Man City would take a two-goal advantage into their second leg on home soil in three weeks’ time; their focus now shift back to the Premier League title race as they attempt to close the two-point gap that separates them in second with leaders Liverpool, who could momentarily move five points clear if they beat Brentford in today’s lunchtime kickoff.

Man City are gearing up for three home fixtures in their next four and will welcome a return to the Etihad where they have not lost any of their last 22 Premier League games. They have also won six of their last eight top-flight home meetings with today’s opponents Chelsea, keeping a clean sheet in five of those victories in the process.

Clean sheets have been hard to come by for the Citizens this season, though, as Guardiola’s side have conceded in 11 of their last 13 Premier League games, and they can ill-afford to show any defensive frailties this weekend against a Chelsea side who fired four goals past them in the reverse fixture and have since netted eight times in their last three games this month.

Chelsea’s frustratingly inconsistent form has been the catalyst behind their mid-table mediocrity so far this season, and after suffering two four-goal defeats to Liverpool and Wolverhampton Wanderers, the pressure has since somewhat eased on head coach Mauricio Pochettino following two important 3-1 away wins over Aston Villa and Crystal Palace.

Five days after beating Villa in an FA Cup fourth-round replay with arguably their best performance of the season to date, the Blues were starring down the barrel of defeat against Palace on Monday as they trailed at half time after failing to register a single shot on target despite boasting 80 per cent possession at Selhurst Park.

However, Chelsea came out a different side after the interval and their efforts were rewarded as ex-Eagles man Conor Gallagher bookended the second half with a brace, before Enzo Fernandez sealed the victory deep into stoppage time.

Having posted 10 wins, four draws and 10 defeats from 24 Premier League games, few can be surprised to see Chelsea languishing in 10th place, but securing European football for next season remains a possibility for the Blues as they are only two points behind Newcastle United in seventh, and seven points adrift of Manchester United in sixth – two teams Chelsea are still to play on home soil.

Pochettino and co must find consistency quickly if they wish to climb the table, but success today could prove challenging as they have failed to win any of their last seven meetings with Man City since securing a famous 1-0 triumph in the 2021 Champions League final; the Blues have also alarmingly conceded in 18 of their last 19 Premier League clashes with the Citizens.