Chelsea vs Man City: Premier League team news and prediction
The game of the weekend in the Premier League comes from Stamford Bridge as title contenders Chelsea and Manchester City face off. Neither side will want to lose ground in the race for domestic glory, so we can expect another close encounter between these two heavyweights.
Ahead of this monster clash, we provide all the key pre-match information, including what time the game kicks off, where to watch this match, team news and probable XIs...
When is kick off?
Saturday 25th September, 12:30 GMT
Where is the match?
Stamford Bridge, London
What TV channel is it on?
BT Sport 1
Chelsea are one of three teams to sit on 13 points after the opening five league games of the season having earned four wins. Their sole draw was a hard-fought one at Liverpool, and came after being reduced to 10 men on the stroke of half time. The Blues put in a solid second half display at Tottenham on Sunday live up to their billing as one of the title favourites, a tag they'll look to strengthen against Manchester City on Saturday.
City sit three points behind Chelsea. They lost to Tottenham on the opening weekend of the season and were held to a 0-0 draw by Southampton last weekend as their title defence gets off to a stuttering start. That said, City booked their spot in the next round of the Carabao Cup with ease, breezing past Wycombe Wanderers 6-1 to boost morale ahead of this decisive clash.
Team News
Edouard Mendy is expected to return to the starting XI having missed the 3-0 win at Tottenham through injury. N'Golo Kante came off the bench at Tottenham last weekend, and his introduction changed the game for the Blues, so the Frenchman may start in the middle of the park. Christian Pulisic will be assessed, but the bad news for Chelsea is the absence of Mason Mount, with Hakim Ziyech and Kai Havertz expected to feature in support of Romelu Lukaku.
Manchester City have three successive away games to navigate now and Pep Guardiola is sweating on the fitness of key quartet Aymeric Laporte, John Stones, Ilkay Gundogan and Rodri. Nathan Ake is on standby to potentially face his former employers at Stamford Bridge ahead of a crucial week for the club. That said, Phil Foden and Kevin De Bruyne both played the full 90 minutes against Wycombe, with the duo fully fit following a spell on the sidelines. Ferran Torres and Raheem Sterling are battling to lead the charge, with the former expected to be given the nod.
Probable XIs
Chelsea (3421) - Mendy; Christensen, Silva, Rudiger; Azpilicueta, Kovacic, Jorginho, Alonso; Havertz, Ziyech; Lukaku
Man City (433) - Ederson; Walker, Dias, Ake, Cancelo; De Bruyne, Fernandinho, Foden; Jesus, Torres, Grealish
Key Battle: Edouard Mendy vs Ederson
Two of the Premier League's most consistent goalkeepers go head-to-head at Stamford Bridge on Saturday. Chelsea weren't made to rue Edouard Mendy's absence at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last week, with Kepa deputising well for the Blues. Since the start of the 2020/21 Premier League season, Mendy has kept 19 clean sheets across 35 appearances, a notable return for the Blues shotstopper.
Mendy's 19 clean sheets is a return bettered only by Ederson (23) from 41 outings since the start of last season. The Brazilian has kept three clean sheets in seven Premier League meetings with the Blues since joining from Benfica, the last of which, though, was back in February 2019. In the last few outings, Chelsea have gotten the better of City, winning four of the last five clashes between the pair, so Ederson will hope to put an end to that run on Saturday.
Score Prediction: Chelsea 2-1 Man City
