Who: Chelsea vs Manchester City
What: Premier League
Where: Stamford Bridge, London
When: Sunday, April 12 at 4:30pm (15:30 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 12:30 GMT in advance of our live text commentary stream.
Second-placed City travel to Chelsea on Sunday as the title race approaches a pivotal moment.
League leaders Arsenal went into the weekend nine points ahead of City, having played a game more than Pep Guardiola’s team.
That lead would increase to 12 points if Arsenal defeat Bournemouth on Saturday, putting City under intense pressure to take maximum points from their tricky trip to Stamford Bridge.
Sixth-placed Chelsea are bidding to put their quest for Champions League qualification back on track after taking just five points from the last available 18.
With five English teams guaranteed to be in European club football’s top competition next season, the Blues begin the weekend a point below fifth-placed Liverpool.
Guardiola said on Friday that an inconsistent Manchester City have little room for error in the Premier League title race, despite a reputation for strong late-season finishes that has delivered six titles during his near-decade at the club.
The title challengers face a demanding stretch of fixtures, beginning with Sunday’s trip to Chelsea, followed by a home clash against Arsenal on April 19.
“Hopefully we can get a lot of points,” Guardiola told reporters when asked about his side’s usual late-season surge.
“In the situation we are in the Premier League, we need to win all of them, otherwise it will not give us the chance to try until the end.
“We have not been consistent enough this season. We have dropped points that we should have taken, which is why we are now in the position where we cannot do anything differently.”
Bernardo Silva has won six Premier League titles and the Champions League since joining City in 2017 from AS Monaco, but his contract expires at the end of the season, and he may be set to leave.
Guardiola said he did not know whether the 31-year-old Portuguese international would leave but made clear his desire to keep him at the club.
“I’m so grumpy with Bernardo because a month ago I said, ‘If you take a decision, I have to be the first to [know]’,” said the City boss. “He didn’t tell me, so I don’t know what’s going on.”
He added: “He is not the tallest one, the most muscular one, or the guy who scores 50 goals or makes 50 assists a season,” Guardiola said. “These are the types of players that get the spotlight. But after nine years, I know him quite well and I know what a manager requires.
“All managers love him because he is incredibly competitive and has a fire inside him. In the toughest moments and on the biggest stages, he is always there.
“He has been an incredible signing for us. I love this club and I would love for him to stay and finish his career here, but I do not know. He will decide what he will decide. It is his decision.”
Chelsea boss Liam Rosenior says Enzo Fernandez remains dropped for Sunday’s Premier League clash against City, despite apologising for comments that cast doubt over his future at Stamford Bridge.
“He’s apologised to me, he’s apologised to the club,” Rosenior told reporters on Friday.
“He won’t play on Sunday but hopefully after that he’ll be a massive part of the group moving forward,” he said.
Rosenior denied that the club were hurting themselves by omitting Fernandez against City.
“Football is a team sport, it’s not about individuals,” he said. “It’s not about shooting yourself in the foot.
“There are certain values and cultures that I believe in, that this club believes in, that makes the team stronger if you get that right.”
Rosenior said he was confident his side could win as they push for a top-five finish, which would guarantee Champions League football next season.
“We’re a very good team, we’ve gone through a difficult run, even though in that run we were punished for mistakes,” he said.
“There were good moments. When I actually analysed the games that we’ve had, we’ve caused every team we’ve played against problems, but haven’t had the results for that.”
The first encounter between these two clubs was in 1907, when they played out a 2-2 draw in the old First Division at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea and City have locked horns 181 times. Chelsea winning 71, City 68, with 42 games drawn.
Surprisingly, Chelsea have not beaten City since meeting in the 2021 Champions League final, when now England boss Thomas Tuchel managed the Blues.
Last 10 encounters:
Rosenior said centre-back Levi Colwill was back in training after suffering a serious knee injury in August, and that right-back Reece James has been running following a hamstring problem.
“Colwill is in full training, but he still needs to overcome some hurdles regarding selection,” he said.
Defender Trevoh Chalobah is still working his way back to fitness after an ankle injury and is set to miss out, while winger Jamie Gittens also remains sidelined.
Predicted starting XI:
Sanchez (goalkeeper); Gusto, Fofana, Adarabioyo, Cucurella; Santos, Caicedo; Neto, Palmer, Estevao; Pedro
Ruben Dias is still recovering from a muscle problem so not ready for the Stamford Bridge trip.
Fellow defender Josko Gvardiol is also unavailable, having been sidelined since January with a tibial fracture to his right leg, and is not yet close to a return.
Predicted starting XI:
Donnarumma (goalkeeper); Nunes, Khusanov, Guehi, O’Reilly; Silva, Rodri; Semenyo, Cherki, Doku; Haaland
此内容由惯性聚合(RSS阅读器)自动聚合整理，仅供阅读参考。 原文来自 — 版权归原作者所有。