On Thursday, Manchester City defeated Chelsea 1-0 at Stamford Bridge thanks to a 63rd-minute goal from substitute Riyad Mahrez. With the victory, Manchester City closed the distance on Premier League leaders Arsenal to five points. January is here, which means that there are tons of new casinos that have rolled out. Make sure you check out the best sports betting options on CasinoDaddy!
Towards the end of a first half devoid of goalmouth activity, substitute Carney Chukwuemeka struck the post. When Jack Grealish’s cross veered near Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga but still found Mahrez at the far post for a tap-in, two City substitutes combined just after the hour mark.
Graham Potter’s team is now mired in 10th position in the standings going into their rematch against the other team in the FA Cup third round on Sunday at Etihad Stadium.
The Imperfections on the field
Despite being far from “nearly flawless” on Thursday, Manchester City nonetheless managed to close the gap to five points, contrary to Pep Guardiola’s prediction that they would need to do so to pass Arsenal at the top of the table. City’s first-half performance was uncharacteristically fragmented, and it took them more than 30 minutes to take their first shot of the match, which was the longest wait in a Premier League match since October 2018. City barely moved out of second gear, but they still managed to hand their opponents their fifth loss in eight games in all competitions, whether due to the stakes involved or the sheer volume of football since domestic play started after the World Cup. Sportaza Casino is one of the best casinos we currently offer!
Potter’s job is not in danger right now, but Chelsea is still in 10th position, 10 points behind Manchester United in fourth. Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital, the club’s new owners, have been adamant that Potter will be given time to establish his authority on the squad despite only having been hired in September. However, the club spent more than £270 million on transfers over the summer, and as they get ready to make significant new investments, a more gratifying return on that investment will be expected. Only three points have been won by Chelsea over clubs that are presently ranked in the top half of the standings.
Chelsea’s injury problem
Due to a training-related injury, Mason Mount was not in the starting lineup. Within the first 22 minutes of this match, Chelsea had to deal with two further injuries as Raheem Sterling and Christian Pulisic hobbled out. Potter was always going to rotate for Sunday’s FA Cup match against the same opponents, but the entire injury situation will make it much more important for them to rest players for the additional Premier League match they have to squeeze in next Thursday against Fulham.
Despite the absence of Wesley Fofana, Armando Broja, Reece James, Ben Chilwell, and N’Golo Kante, at least Benoit Badiashile was present in the crowd next to Boehly, having just finished a €37 million transfer from AS Monaco earlier in the day. At this rate, he could be needed sooner than desired.
Chelsea is aggressively seeking to bolster its roster during the January transfer window. Talks with Benfica over midfielder Enzo Fernandez are still ongoing, while talks with Shakhtar Donetsk director of football Darijo Srna are anticipated regarding a move for winger Mykhailo Mudryk. The team’s present situation and a large number of missing players will only increase the pressure on the club to make a quick decision in the market.
In the first half, there was a passing similarity to the 2021 Champions League final since Guardiola ran the risk of overcomplicating his lineup, which is what transpired that evening in Porto. In possession, City used a back three with Joao Cancelo playing in an advanced right-sided position. To overload Chelsea, Bernardo Silva and Kevin De Bruyne frequently crossed over to that side, but more than anything, the players didn’t appear to be able to locate space the way City so frequently do better than anybody else.
In the end, Guardiola’s substitutions proved to be the right ones, as Manuel Akanji and Rico Lewis improved City’s balance after the break before Grealish and Mahrez entered the game around the hour mark and combined for the game-winning goal three minutes later. Even Kalvin Phillips, a £45 million acquisition, had time to check on things late on.
When Sterling was forced to go, Potter chose Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in contrast. Aubameyang, 33, was an incidental player and was substituted off with Chelsea in need of a goal, despite Chelsea privately insisting that he was always a preferred target regardless of the manager (he arrived less than a week before Thomas Tuchel, under whom he thrived at Borussia Dortmund, was fired). Conor Gallagher, Chukwuemeka, a highly regarded but inexperienced adolescent, Omari Hutchinson (making his senior debut), and Lewis Hall were all introduced by Potter.
