It was a tight affair, but Chelsea defeated Manchester City on Wednesday evening to get back on track to Premier League triumph.
Chelsea and Manchester City squared off on Wednesday night in a much-anticipated Premier League contest. After succumbing to a shock defeat at the hands of Crystal Palace at the weekend, both teams needed a win to boost their respective campaigns.
Fortunately, the Blues emerged victorious in a competitive and exciting affair. The home team took the lead through Eden Hazard, before a Thibaut Courtois gifted City the equaliser. Hazard then converted the rebound off his missed penalty to put Chelsea 2-1 up. That’s how it ended.
Following the weekend’s disappointment, Antonio Conte needed this victory to silence the tabloids. The dropped three points caused many to start talking about a collapse of epic proportions that would hand the title to City or Tottenham Hotspur.
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Indeed, if the Blues had lost again, the lead would be just four points with fixtures against Everton, Southampton and Manchester United still remaining.
However, they showed the resolve and the grit to scrape a win that essentially renders the title race over. Mathematically, the pack still have a chance, but the win proved that the Blues will not crumble on the home stretch.
With Victor Moses still out injured, the West Londoners may have been exploited down the right. That didn’t happen. Furthermore, Chelsea could have been deflated following Courtois’ awful clearance. They weren’t
Conte and his men were focused on their task at hand and they delivered the goods. It wasn’t a convincing performance by any stretch of the imagination, but it was effective enough to earn those all important three points.
Since that infamous Arsenal lost back in September, Chelsea have lost just one game against the current top six. This resolve has been a big factor in their ascent to the top of the table. The Blues have won pretty, scoring plenty of goals, but they have also grinded out a win when needed.
Against City, they needed a win more than at anytime previously this season and a win is what they came away with.
Now, fans can breathe a sigh of relief and enjoy the remaining eight games. Seven points is a huge lead to surrender in such a short time and Chelsea’s performances have indicated that they are not liable for such a choke.
What do you think? Are Conte’s men home and dry? Let us know in the comments below!