Manchester City vs Chelsea
Manchester City host Chelsea in the third round of the FA Cup on Sunday and Graham Potters’ Blues will be sick of the sight of their opponents.
The two teams met at Stamford Bridge on Thursday night and the Sky Blues ran out 1-0 winners, a result which left Chelsea in tenth place and with plenty to ponder, not least the size of their injury list.
Meanwhile, it is no surprise that the current FA Cup 2023 betting odds make Pep Guardiola’s Sky Blues the favorites to win this competition, as they do with pretty much every tournament City enters. But the beauty of football lies in its unpredictability; particularly on big occasions. Anyone who witnessed the incredible 2022 World Cup final will testify to that!
Can Chelsea spring a surprise and exact some swift revenge on City? If Thursday’s action is anything to go by then I have my doubts…
Talking Points
Too easy for City
The league encounter between Chelsea and Manchester City on Thursday night was an odd affair. Chelsea were arguably the better side in the first half and they were applauded off at the final whistle as the London crowd could see just how much they had put into the game, but the moment of quality never came for the hosts. In total contrast, the Manchester City players looked like they were still enjoying the Christmas break in a first half in which it took them over half an hour to register a shot.
In the second half it was a different story as Guardiola rang the changes and two of his substitutes, Jack Grealish and Riyad Mahrez, combined to score the winner; and while Chelsea briefly rallied the result was never really in doubt as the Sky Blues coasted home in second gear.
The bright note for Chelsea fans came in the performances of two of their young stars. Carney Chukwuemeka was lively and inventive and he hit the post with Chelsea’s best effort of the game. Second half substitute Conor Gallagher took the game to their visitors with his direct running and willingness to attack, and I believe both should make a start on Sunday.
Stones is rock solid for Sky Blues
He was once a bright young prospect, with the odd mistake in him, but Manchester City centre-back John Stones has become the complete defender. Stones is one of the first names on the Sky Blues team-sheet, ahead of world stars such as Aymeric Laporte and Ruben Dias and he put in a dominant showing against Chelsea on Thursday, getting a crucial touch on the Blues’ best effort and putting in some uncompromising tackles. The former Barnsley academy player weighs in with the odd goal too and, after the win over Chelsea, he put in a rallying call to his team-mates, saying: “In recent years we’ve been on winning runs and we have to keep the momentum. If we play like we did at Chelsea then we can go all the way.”
Chelsea injuries getting out of hand
While it’s all going broadly to plan at the Etihad, things are falling apart at Stamford Bridge and Graham Potter is fast running out of players as his injury list grows by the day. Raheem Sterling and Christian Pulisic were both substituted within 22 minutes on Thursday, both after coming into contact with Stones, and they join N’Golo Kante, Edouard Mendy, Mason Mount, Ben Chilwell, Wesley Fofana and Reece James in the treatment room.
I think they may need more beds!
History
Chelsea have won 29 to Manchester City’s 24 in all competitions over the past 30 years; though the Sky Blues have won the last four encounters. Both league matches ended in a 1-0 win for the Manchester side last season while they also triumphed in this season’s Carabao Cup 2-0 just before the World Cup. And, of course, they made it four from four on Thursday.
In terms of recent form the Sky Blues have a clear edge, with five wins a draw, and a defeat from the last seven games while Chelsea have had five defeats, a win, and a draw.
Betting Tip
We’ll be back with the best FA Cup 2023 highlights on Sunday, but in the meantime let’s make a call on this tie-of-the-round. Manchester City are at shorter odds to win this game than they were to win Thursday’s league clash. At SBOTOP odds of 1.44 they are hot favorites to make it to the fourth round.
Meanwhile the Blues can be backed at 5.41 and the draw at a price of 3.78; but having read back my words above I can’t see anything other than a City victory!
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR (⭐) BETS ARE WORTH:
⭐⭐⭐= €20 (HIGHLY CONFIDENT)
⭐⭐= €10 (CONFIDENT))
⭐= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT)
Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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