Chelsea vs Man City preview, team news, tickets, line-ups and prediction

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This weekends huge Premier League clash sees Chelsea take on Manchester City at Stamford Bridge on Sunday afternoon.

The Blues have endured another difficult start to the season under new boss Mauricio Pochettino and it’s certainly taking time for their billion-pound squad to settle. After dropping points against the likes of West Ham, Nottingham Forest, Bournemouth, Aston Villa and Brentford, Chelsea were left floundering down in 14th position at one stage.

However, they managed to get back on track with a vital 4-1 victory over 9-man Tottenham on Monday night. It was a chaotic game that saw two Spurs players sent off, five goals disallowed and Nicolas Jackson score a late hat-trick to secure the win for Chelsea. After Cristian Romero and Destiny Udogie got their marching orders, it should have been a relatively simple task for Chelsea to dismantle Tottenham – especially as Ange Postecoglou went gung-ho with his tactics and instructed his Spurs defence to play on the half-way line rather than protecting their goal to try and grind out a 1-1 draw.

Chelsea struggled to find the killer pass to break the offside trap and wasted numerous chances to take the lead. They eventually found the breakthrough in the 75th minute after Jackson turned home a Raheem Sterling cross. Chelsea survived two scares when Tottenham almost equalised before Jackson hit a brace in injury time to wrap-up his hat-trick and secure a 4-1 win for the visitors.

The result has moved Chelsea up to 10th in the table and although they are still nine points adrift of the top four, the win over Tottenham should give them some much needed confidence heading into a huge clash with defending champions Manchester City.

After a mini slump that saw Pep Guardiola’s men lose to Wolves and Arsenal in the league a month ago, City are back to their best. They head into this game off the back of a five-game winning run in all competitions that includes a 3-0 win over Man Utd at Old Trafford and a 6-1 demolition of Bournemouth. City have also booked their place in the knockout stages of the Champions League after beating Young Boys 3-0 on Tuesday night.

The Cityzens sit top of the Premier League table – one point ahead of Tottenham – so they’ll be looking to cement their place at the summit with a win in West London this weekend.

How to watch

Unsurprisingly, Chelsea vs Manchester City has been selected for live broadcast and will be shown on Sky Sports at 4.30pm on Sunday afternoon. Subscribers can watch all the action on their TV, or via the app on mobile or tablet devices.

Match-going fans may struggle to get hold of tickets via official channels as they’re likely to be sold out. However, you can still buy Chelsea vs Man City tickets on reputable reseller sites such as seatsnet.com.

Team news

Chelsea continue to deal with a lengthy injury list. Wesley Fofana remains on the sidelines for the foreseeable future with a serious knee injury that he sustained in pre-season. Ben Chilwell is also still nursing a thigh injury that’s expected to keep him out for another few weeks.

Summer signing Romeo Lavia still hasn’t played a competitive game for Chelsea since arriving in August. The midfielder is no closer to returning to action as he’s still recovering from an ankle injury.

Carney Chukwuemeka is out with a knee injury while Trevoh Chalobah is also sidelined by a thigh problem that’s kept him out in recent weeks. Armando Broja will be assessed as he could return from a knee problem that’s hampered him lately.

Striker Christopher Nkunku is edging closer to making a return to action as he’s doing light gym work at Cobham. But the Frenchman is still not available as he builds up his fitness from a serious knee injury.

Man City have been dealt a major blow with the news that John Stones is facing a spell on the sidelines after suffering a thigh injury. The versatile defender has been a key player for Guardiola this season so his absence will be a huge blow.

Manuel Akanji is also a doubt to face Chelsea after picking up a back injury in midweek. He’ll require a late fitness test before his availability is determined. Sergio Gomez remains out with a muscle injury while Kevin de Bruyne continues to recover from a thigh injury that will keep him out until next month.

Likely line-ups

Pochettino may not want to tinker too much from the side that beat Spurs. Jackson is expected to keep his place up front after scoring a hat-trick while Raheem Sterling and Cole Palmer should also retain their places in attack.

Marc Cucurella is pushing for a recall but Levi Colwill and Reece James should keep their places in the Chelsea defence alongside Thiago Silva and Axel Disasi. Conor Gallagher, Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez should also keep their places.

As for Man City, they are certain to make some changes from the side that beat Young Boys in midweek. Rodri, Bernardo Silva and Jeremy Doku should all be recalled to the starting eleven after being rested in the Champions League.

Manuel Nunes and Phil Foden could make way to the bench with Mateo Kovacic and Rico Lewis keeping their places in midfield. Jack Grealish may also retain his place while Erling Haaland will lead the line up front once again after scoring another brace on Tuesday night.

Likely Chelsea XI: Sanchez, James, Silva, Disasi, Colwill, Fernandez, Caicedo, Gallagher, Palmer, Sterling, Jackson

Likely Man City XI: Ederson, Walker, Dias, Gvardiol, Lewis, Rodri, Silva, Kovacic, Grealish, Doku, Haaland

Prediction

The win over Tottenham should have given Chelsea a much-needed morale boost heading into this game. However, City will pose a much sterner test than 9-man Spurs so the Blues will have to be on their best form to get anything out of this one.

Man City are in formidable form and should be confident of picking up all three points in west London this weekend. Guardiola’s men are top class all over the pitch and with Haaland leading the line up front, they will always be a huge goal threat.

Chelsea’s inconsistent attack is unlikely to test Man City’s defence too much and we can see the defending champions easing to victory at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea 0-2 Man City

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