Chelsea v Manchester City – Talking Points
Chelsea will look to bounce back from their shock loss to Crystal Palace
Premier League leaders Chelsea play fourth-placed Manchester City at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night.
Here are five talking points ahead of the clash.
Conte is number one
Pep Guardiola was for so long believed to be Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich’s first-choice boss. But Chelsea have found ‘The Right One’ in Antonio Conte. Jose Mourinho may say this Chelsea team is largely his, but Conte has revived and rejuvenated them, unleashed Eden Hazard from defensive responsibility and persuaded N’Golo Kante to be a key component in the revolution. Guardiola was expected to lead Manchester City to a title challenge after excelling at Barcelona and Bayern Munich. But the full extent of the job the Catalan has to do at City may only now becoming apparent.
Feeling blue?
After September’s losses to Liverpool and Arsenal, Chelsea won 13 successive Premier League games – including 3-1 at City – until defeat at Tottenham on January 4. Then came an unbeaten run of 12 – nine in the league, seven wins – before Crystal Palace’s surprise win at Stamford Bridge on Saturday. That would likely have knocked any hint of complacency out of Chelsea players, and City are the ideal opponents for the next game. Chelsea will be desperate for a positive answer with nine games to go and to kick-start a title-clinching run. Conte has constantly pointed to his experience of losing a Serie A title as a player when in the finishing straight and does not wish to do it again.
Consolidation and consolation for City
Guardiola: I never promise titles. I promise a lot of work. Few guys can beat me in that. I work a lot. I am so proud of that #mcfc
— Andy Hampson (@andyhampson) March 18, 2017
With an 11-point deficit prior to the fixture, it seems inconceivable that City could win this season’s title. Tottenham are far better placed if Chelsea slip. City must secure direct Champions League qualification by finishing in the top three – especially if Leicester’s fairytale continues and sees them win the European Cup – as a short-term objective. Guardiola would then be able to build for the longer term. Conte reckons City’s squad is better than Chelsea’s. And Guardiola has said there will not be a clear-out, but six players are out of contract, five on loan may not return and there are question marks over several others, including Sergio Aguero and Vincent Kompany.
Diego the destroyer?
Diego Costa’s future is far from certain amid anticipated renewed bids for him this summer. Speculation over a move to the Chinese Super League arose in January and a return to Spain and Atletico Madrid is often mooted. Costa has scored four times in 12 games since the turn of the year and spurned one fine chance for an equaliser against Palace. Rumours of moves to bring in Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez and/or Everton’s Romelu Lukaku suggest Costa’s future position as the focal point of Chelsea’s attack is under scrutiny. And Abramovich and Conte may look on in envy at City’s striking resources. It may be time to cash in on Costa, who is 29 in October.
Keeping clean
Thibaut Courtois has 13 Premier League clean sheets this season, although none since January. City’s goalkeeping conundrum is well documented, with England number one Joe Hart on loan at Torino, and Claudio Bravo plagued by problems. Willy Caballero is a stop-gap solution as his contract expires this summer. Will Guardiola stick or twist? Stick with Bravo and build a stronger defence in front of him? Or cut his losses and seek another goalkeeper to satisfy his desire to build from the back? Courtois’ passing ability was questioned earlier in the campaign but he’s developed that side of his game. Could Hart do the same, given time by Guardiola? Courtois now regularly posts on social media videos of him scoring in training. Chelsea will be keen to keep him amid overtures from Real Madrid.
