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Chelsea v. City: Three things to look out for in the battle of the Champions

By Subhrajit Chowdhury

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MAY 08: A general internal view of Etihad Stadium, home stadium of Manchester City under overcast skies featuring the giant LED scoreboard showing Manchester City and Chelsea emblems during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Chelsea at Etihad Stadium on May 8, 2021 in Manchester, United Kingdom. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Matthew Ashton - AMA/Getty Images)
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MAY 08: A general internal view of Etihad Stadium, home stadium of Manchester City under overcast skies featuring the giant LED scoreboard showing Manchester City and Chelsea emblems during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Chelsea at Etihad Stadium on May 8, 2021 in Manchester, United Kingdom. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Matthew Ashton - AMA/Getty Images) /
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PORTO, PORTUGAL – MAY 29: Andreas Christensen of Chelsea celebrates with the Champions League Trophy following their team’s victory during the UEFA Champions League Final between Manchester City and Chelsea FC at Estadio do Dragao on May 29, 2021 in Porto, Portugal. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)
PORTO, PORTUGAL – MAY 29: Andreas Christensen of Chelsea celebrates with the Champions League Trophy following their team’s victory during the UEFA Champions League Final between Manchester City and Chelsea FC at Estadio do Dragao on May 29, 2021 in Porto, Portugal. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images) /

3. Chelsea’s defensive stability

Chelsea has only conceded twice this season; however, it could have easily been more. Although the Blues defenders are very good individually, as a team they are often leaving behind space that opponents are easily exploiting. It happened against Liverpool when Henderson was through on goal, it happened against Spurs a few times, and Son Heung-min would have scored had it not been for Kepa Arrizabalaga’s brilliant goalkeeping. Finally, it happened against Villa as well in the Carabao cup. Cameron Archer had two great chances of scoring when he was poorly marked and he was on a one-on-one situation with Kepa. However, the goalkeeper came to Chelsea’s rescue yet again.

This is a bit concerning for the Blues, as City is a team that likes to play possession-based football while constantly pressurizing their opponents. Instead of taking shots from just anywhere, City likes to cut open the defense with a quick square pass from the wings or a brilliant through ball by Kevin de Bruyne. They are the masters of cutting teams open and if Chelsea keeps making such mistakes, it could end up being very costly for them.

The likes of Thiago Silva, Antonio Rudiger, and Cesar Azpilicueta should be able to stop the constant barrage of attacks that the Sky Blues likes to put their opponents under. The trio managed to hold off the Citizens for more than 90 minutes in the Champions League finals so they should have no problem holding off their opponents on Saturday either. However, if there are gaps left in the defense again, City’s attackers will easily exploit it. Both the teams are ruthless, and they will have to make the best of any chances that they get. The Blues need to make their defense a bit tighter if they want to survive against Guardiola’s team.

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