STAR PREVIEW: Chelsea v Man City

Manchester City haven’t missed a beat since the Premier League restarted but things will get more difficult for them as they travel to Stamford Bridge tonight to face Chelsea.

The Citizens have smashed eight goals in wins against Arsenal (3-0) and Burnley (5-0), but things worked out in their favour against The Gunners, who were playing reasonably well before losing Pablo Mari and being forced to replace him with David Luiz, whilst they simply outclassed a Burnley side that was absolutely beset by injuries.

Tonight they face a Chelsea side that, whilst sitting well above Arsenal and Burnley in the table (Chelsea are 12 and 13 points clear of those two respectively) should also improve for their reopening win against Aston Villa on Sunday. It took the introduction of second half substitutes Ross Barkley (who was far more effective at taking on opposition players than Mateo Kovačić) and Christian Pulisic (whose off the ball movement was a big improvement based on the first half) to really get them going but once they were introduced the Blues fought hard against a Villa side with the benefit of game time under their belts and with that pairing on the field Chelsea quickly became the better side.

Having that game-time under their belt could see Chelsea take quite a big step forward initially and they are probably the first team that is well placed to give City a strong challenge, especially in an attacking sense if Christian Pulisic and Ross Barkley make the starting line-up, whilst Frank Lampard will also have options from the bench to choose.

Chelsea v Manchester City
Premier League
20:15 BT Sport 1 HD / BT Sport Extra 1 / BT Sport Ultimate

HEAD TO HEAD RECORD
(Maximum 10 matches, since 2010)
NOV 2019 PREMIER LEAGUE Manchester City 2-1 Chelsea
FEB 2019 EFL CUP Chelsea 0-0 Manchester City
FEB 2019 PREMIER LEAGUE Manchester City 6-0 Chelsea
DEC 2018 PREMIER LEAGUE Chelsea 2-0 Manchester City
AUG 2018 COMMUNITY SHIELD Chelsea 0-2 Manchester City
MAR 2018 PREMIER LEAGUE Manchester City 0-1 Chelsea
SEP 2017 PREMIER LEAGUE Chelsea 0-1 Manchester City
DEC 2016 PREMIER LEAGUE Manchester City 1-3 Chelsea
APR 2016 PREMIER LEAGUE Chelsea 0-3 Manchester City
FEB 2016 FA CUP Chelsea 5-1 Manchester City
AUG 2015 PREMIER LEAGUE Manchester City 3-0 Chelsea

This will be particularly important against a City side which has given a runout to all their key players, with Kevin De Bryune outstanding against Arsenal, Riyad Mahrez brilliant against Burnley, and a number of players – such as the starlet Phil Foden – shining in both games when asked, especially after the break.

There’s a case to be made for saying that Chelsea are too big at the current prices, although given their underlying numbers, it would be no surprise to see people eagerly taking up the 4/5 on City behind closed doors. Goals may be the best way to go in this game – City haven’t been tested defensively so far but Chelsea have the tools to test their rear guard and their eight matches against the current top six, they have kept only one clean sheet.

However, Chelsea have let in 40 goals in 30 league games this season – and have conceded at home against each team they’ve played in the current top eight – so the 4/6 on Over 2.5 goals looks appealing.

RECOMMENDED BETS (scale of 1-100 points)
BACK Over 2.5 Goals 2 pts at 4/6 with

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