As the long and frustrating international break finally draws to a close, fans of the Premier League have an eventful weekend to look forward to. With Chelsea and Manchester City clashing at the Etihad Stadium, it’s a fixture that could make or break either team’s entire season. While the onus will unquestionably be on Manchester City to get the win, Frank Lampard’s Blues have been in good form and will definitely provide Pep Guardiola’s men with a stern test.
While the Blues went into the international break following a motivating win against Crystal Palace, Manchester City saw their title hopes being dashed even further as they succumbed to a disappointing defeat against title-challengers Liverpool. The Blues will have to be at their best if they are to get anything out of this tie, and the 6-0 drubbing they suffered here last year, is sure to be lingering on Frank Lampard’s mind as well.
Team News
The Blues’ biggest positive in terms of news in that N’Golo Kante, who started the game against the Eagles last time out, is now fully fit and completely off the injury list. Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Ross Barkley are still on their recovery paths and should be expected to return in the coming months, while Marco Van Ginkel’s ACL injury is set to keep him out for longer.
Another key returnee for the week will be Italian regista Jorginho. The Brazil-born former Napoli star missed the Blues’ win over the Eagles as he was serving a suspension for picking up five yellow cards. Antonio Rudiger recently underwent an operation and isn’t expected back for another three weeks.
Predicted 4-3-3 Chelsea Lineup Vs Manchester City
Formation: 4-3-3
Defence
Ahead of Kepa Arizzabalaga in goal, expect to see the familiar defensive-duo of Fikayo Tomori and Kurt Zouma. Despite the Blues’ apparent inability to keep clean sheets, there has been a visible improvement in recent weeks. The Frenchman’s physical dominance, backed up by the young Englishman’s dynamism and enthusiasm, makes for a rather complete centre-half pairing.
Although Marcos Alonso is available for selection as well, expect Frank Lampard to start the tie against City with Emerson Palmieri at left-back. The Italian international is a much better defender than his Spanish counterpart – a factor that could come into play when they face one of the deadliest attacks in the entire league. We expect Reece James to drop back to the bench and the Blues’ skipper Cesar Azpilicueta will replace him.
Midfield
The Blues began the game against Palace with Mateo Kovacic and N’Golo Kante in the heart of midfield. The pair of them controlled proceedings on the night and ensured that the ball kept ticking over in their favour. With a team like City up next, it wouldn’t be too much of a surprise to see Lampard trying to overload the midfield by adding Jorginho into the mix as well. Opting for a three-man midfield could allow the Blues a lot more control and influence in the middle of the park.
Attack
With a tough opponent like Manchester City up next, Lampard will have to drop one of his in-form stars to make room for Jorginho. By the look of things, it’s going to American international Christian Pulisic who gets demoted to the bench for this tie.
While Willian’s experience and know-how offer a lot to the Blues going forward, Mason Mount’s inventiveness is something that Lampard wouldn’t want to miss out on. He is expected to operate down the left flank – a position he has played in before this season. Tammy Abraham is set to lead the line as usual.
