Match report:
Full-time: Chelsea 2-1 Manchester City
That’s it! Chelsea have secured a massive win in their quest for the title! Eden Hazard’s double moves them 14 points clear of Manchester City and keeps them seven ahead of Tottenham with eight matches to go. They were so resilient. Stamford Bridge is rocking and it’s safe to say Chelsea have recovered from that defeat to Crystal Palace. As for City, they’re still fourth - but they’re only four points in front of Manchester United and Arsenal. That’s all from me for now. Thanks for emailing and reading. Bye.
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90 min+3: Kante is finally booked for fouling Silva. Time is running out for City. They have a free-kick on the right. Silva knocks it in. Matic heads it out for a throw. City continue to press. But an aimless long ball from Clichy sees the move fizzle out.
90 min+2: The corner drops to the unmarked Stones in the six-yard box but the ball’s just behind him and he turns it over! What a let-off for Chelsea, who completely switched off!
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90 min+1: There will be three added minutes. Nolito spins on the left, looks up and drifts a bending, teasing ball inside Alonso, who’s got no idea what to do. Aguero nips in behind him and tries to prod it home, but Courtois assertively blocks it behind for a City corner!
90 min: Chelsea make their final change. Ruben Loftus-Cheek replaces Eden Hazard, who’s looking like the matchwinner.
88 min: This has been something of a defensive masterclass from Chelsea in the second half. There haven’t been many openings for City, who could learn a thing or two from the leaders.
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85 min: Nolito replaces Leroy Sane.
83 min: Vincent Kompany, puffing his cheeks, chugs after a loose ball, but Hazard’s too quick for him, and the City man chops him down. He’s booked. Put it down to rust.
81 min: Willian replaces Cesc Fabregas.
80 min: A cross from the left, a header from David Luiz, a sight of goal for Aguero on the right. He’s unmarked, but the angle’s tight and he rams his shot wide.
79 min: Raheem Sterling replaces Kevin de Bruyne.
77 min: Tottenham have turned it around at Swansea! They lead 2-1! Meanwhile Fabian Delph has been booked.
76 min: Chelsea press for a killer third, Hazard teeing up Fabregas on the edge of the area. He can’t get a shot away, but he can find Pedro, who pulls it back to Hazard. Is this the hat-trick? Nope! Hazard leans back and fires over from 15 yards.
73 min: “Do you have “Manchester City corner. It comes to nothing” saved in your copy and paste?” says Spencer Jones. “Probably the best move covering any of their games.”
We’re all thinking it, aren’t they? So I’ll say it. Guardiola needs a Plan B. He needs Andy Carroll.
72 min: David Luiz puts the free-kick into the City wall.
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71 min: A hapless attempt at a clearance from Stones gifts possession to Costa, who’s bundled over by the increasingly weary Kompany.
70 min: Silva slides a ball into the six-yard box, but Cahill’s in front of Aguero. Luiz shuffles the ball behind. The corner comes to nothing.
67 min: Chelsea threaten for the first time in a while, but Caballero watches Pedro’s bouncing effort all the way.
66 min: It’s all City now. Sane speeds down the left and Luiz is forced to concede another corner. Again, though, Chelsea deal with it.
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65 min: Silva swings the corner in and Stones rises above Matic, who reckons he’s being pushed, but the header’s straight at Courtois.
64 min: David Silva, continuing to pull the strings for City, wins a corner on the left.
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63 min: Now Pedro brings down Sane and, er, gets a free-kick. Mike Dean is confusing Manchester City.
61 min: Kante has fouled Silva a few times tonight. He does it again and still hasn’t picked up a booking. Pep Guardiola isn’t happy.
59 min: Manchester City are struggling to trouble Chelsea at the moment.
57 min: “Of course, the big question is; Do I pragmatically want Chelsea to win, because it might help Liverpool consolidate a top four finish, or do I want City to win, because a Liverpool title is still mathematically possible?” says Matt Dony. “And really, if the words ‘still mathematically possible’ don’t cause a frisson of excitement, are you truly a football fan?”
55 min: A random City clearance almost runs through to Aguero, but Cahill is alive to the danger.
53 min: After a spell of fairly aimless Chelsea pressure, Kante’s shot hits a team-mate and goes wide.
52 min: The first booking of the evening goes to Gael Clichy. His crime? A clumsy foul on Pedro.
51 min: Another free-kick to Manchester City, this time on the left. Silva whips it in and it’s headed away, but only as far as Delph who lifts the ball back into the area. Fernandinho looks offside, but the flag stays down and the unmarked City midfielder slices his volley over!
49 min: Kurt Zouma wasn’t injured: the Chelsea substitution was tactical.
47 min: Kante catches Silva late. Silva needs a bit of treatment before play can resume. When it does, De Bruyne hoicks a high free-kick towards the far post from the right. It looks like it’s going behind and Matic stops, only for Kompany to loop a header goalwards from an improbably angle. Time stands still. The header hits the bar and bounces away.
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46 min: Chelsea get the second half underway and they’ve made a change: Nemanja Matic is on for Kurt Zouma, meaning that Pedro is at right wing-back and Cesar Azpilicueta is in the back three.
Hi @JacobSteinberg can a team win the league with a horrible kit? I give you Barcelona 2012/13 pic.twitter.com/36dhUJAIpq
— Richard Morris (@richardmorrisuk) April 5, 2017
The player’s name is Agüero, not Aguero,” says Ivor Smith, who has a handle on the big issues of the day.
Half-time: Chelsea 2-1 Manchester City
Manchester City have played the better football, so it’s just as well that Chelsea have Eden Hazard, isn’t it? The leaders are 45 minutes away from what would be a huge win.
45 min: There will be one added minute.
41 min: Aguero and David Luiz hare after a ball down the right. Luiz gives the impression that he’s up for some revenge here. He sort of does, barging into Aguero and sending him skittering into the hoardings. That was ever so slightly naughty from the Brazilian. There was a definite edge of that challenge and how the Chelsea fans enjoyed it.
40 min: Tottenham are 1-0 down to Swansea at half-time. Paul Doyle has more details. As it stands, Chelsea are going 10 points clear again.
38 min: De Bruyne fizzes a high cross into the area from the right. Courtois is concerned enough to palm it over his own bar.
36 min: City pick up where they left off. Aguero lets fly from 18 yards, but a deflection takes his shot just wide. The corner comes to nothing.
GOAL! Chelsea 2-1 Manchester City (Hazard, 35 min)
Eden Hazard’s penalty is far too casual and Willy Caballero saves it easily, diving to his left to reach the ball. But it hits the inside of the City goalkeeper’s hand, meaning the ball spins back into the six-yard box for Hazard to atone for his miss by gobbling up the rebound! That’s his second and Chelsea are back in front.
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PENALTY TO CHELSEA!
34 min: Cesc Fabregas threads a pass through to Pedro on the left. He jinks back on to his right foot and Fernandinho hangs out a foot and brings him down! Mike Dean points to the spot!
33 min: Clichy slides a low ball into the area, but it’s too close to Courtois.
32 min: The corner is a waste of time.
31 min: City are playing with more urgency now. Buoyed by the equaliser, they’re pulling Chelsea around a bit. De Bruyne wins a corner on the right.
30 min: “That Manchester City away strip is the Coventry City brown kit of the 21st Century,” says Justin Kavanagh. “It’s making my eyes bleed.”
Is it possible to win the league with a bad kit?
28 min: Chelsea haven’t kept a clean sheet in the league since 22 January - and they are rocking now! David Silva, afforded a criminal amount of space in front of the Chelsea defence, sets Leroy Sane clear. He’s got the pace to reach the pass, but he can’t quite dink it over the onrushing Courtois and though the ball hits Sane and rebounds into the area, the German’s off balance, allowing a Chelsea defender to mop up.
GOAL! Chelsea 1-1 Manchester City (Aguero, 26 min)
This is a complete farce. Under little pressure, Thibaut Courtois faffs around with the ball for a bit, then knocks it straight on to the chest of David Silva. Bad idea. Silva lopes into the Chelsea area, with the home side caught cold, assesses his options and shoots from the left. Courtois saves, but the rebound runs to Aguero and he’s not going to miss an open goal. That’s a decent way for Aguero to silence the Chelsea fans. But what a gift from Courtois.
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25 min: Aguero, a little gingerly, is on his feet again. He’s still being barracked by the home fans.
24 min: Marcos Alonso chases and slides in from behind as Aguero dribbles down the right and appears to catch the City forward. Aguero goes down in some pain, but Mike Dean waves play on.
22 min: Chelsea respond with a raid from Hazard down the left. He turns and spins on the edge of the area, holding off two defenders before sliding a pass across to Fabregas. He hits it first time and his shot’s deflected by Clichy, the ball looping over the stranded Caballero and inches over the bar. The corner comes to nothing.
21 min: David Luiz steps out of defence in an attempt to cut out a one-two between Sergio Aguero and David Silva, bringing to mind his slapstick wanderings in Belo Horizonte in 2014, but he’s not there in time and Aguero scoots off towards the Chelsea area. He swerves to the right and looks like he’s going to score as he pulls the trigger, only to scuff it at Courtois. Gary Cahill is furious with Luiz.
19 min: Fernandinho puts his laces through the ball from 25 yards. It’s straight at Thibaut Courtois.
18 min: Hazard’s goal hasn’t really changed the pattern of the game. City are still bossing the possession, but it’s all in front of Chelsea, who remain content to soak up the pressure. This domination is of the sterile variety.
16 min: Fabian Delph has a pop from 30 yards, but sadly he is Fabian Delph.
15 min: Eden Hazard has now scored six goals against teams in the top seven this season. He’s definitely gone up a level under Antonio Conte. Funny what can happen when your manager’s not constantly belittling you.
13 min: City pour forward, Chelsea’s midfield nowhere to be seen, and Sane’s got mischief on the mind on the edge of the area. He moves it to the left for Aguero, but his shot’s blocked and Chelsea survive.
12 min: Manchester City need Wilfried Zaha. And a new goalkeeper.
GOAL! Chelsea 1-0 Manchester City (Hazard, 10 min)
Pedro and Cesar Azpilicueta combine down the right. Pedro moves wide and no one tracks Azpilicueta’s run. He’s found by his fellow Spaniard and he picks up his head before cleverly pulling it back to Hazard, who’s been given too much space in the City area. He instantly shoots with the inside of his right foot and although his effort’s not particularly well struck, the slightest of deflections off Kompany’s forehead is enough to deceive Willy Caballero, who can’t react quickly enough. Diving to his left, City’s goalkeeper ends up pushing the ball into the opposite corner and the best player in the league has given the leaders the early advantage.
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10 min: This is just like a chess match.
9 min: Poor Pep. That was uncalled for, wasn’t it? Here’s a reminder of happier times, a merry jig down the Stamford Bridge touchline in 2009.
8 min: This, of course, is Pep Guardiola’s first game at Stamford Bridge since this happened.
6 min: Hazard diddles down the left flank, as menacing as ever, and pulls a pass back to Costa on the edge of the area. The Chelsea forward struggles to get the ball out from under his feet, however, and ends up digging a poor shot wide.
5 min: Manchester City are enjoying most of the early possession, helping themselves to plenty of touches on the ball. Chelsea are mostly sitting deep and hoping to spring on the break.
3 min: Good news for Chelsea: Swansea lead against Tottenham. Paul Doyle has coverage of the rest of tonight’s games here.
2 min: Aguero, booed by the Chelsea fans, scampers down the inside right channel for the first time. He’s tracked all the way by David Luiz. Watch this space.
And we’re off! Manchester City, in their orange away strip, get the game underway. They’re kicking from right to left in the first half. It’s not long before N’Golo Kante wins possession for Chelsea.
The teams are out at Stamford Bridge. They’ll be entertaining us soon. Hopefully.
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Here’s what the Premier League has been missing in recent years: a proper rivalry at the top. There hasn’t really been once since Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United and the Jose Mourinho inspired Chelsea locked horns. Chelsea and Manchester City could provide us with the next one. But it hasn’t really taken off yet.
“While it is a rare thing to feel such affection for another team’s player, the thought of Kompany holding the back of his leg again before half-time is too much witness,” Ian Copestake says.
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Both managers have just appeared on television and their quotes are truly fascinating. Look how much they gave away!
“It is a long time he hasn’t played,” Pep Guardiola says of Vincent Kompany. “He has experience and we need everybody, so that is why he’s ready.”
“We are still missing Victor Moses and we finished the last game with some problems for some players,” Antonio Conte says.
“It was either this game or Friday with the ressies,” smiles Vincent Kompany. “I’m really happy to be involved.
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Chelsea make one change from Saturday’s defeat to Crystal Palace. Victor Moses is still out, but Antonio Conte has opted against using Pedro in the right wing-back position again. The Spaniard suspect defensively against Palace, so he moves back into the front three, allowing Kurt Zouma to replace Nemanja Matic for his first start in the league this season.
Pep Guardiola’s taking a few chances, meanwhile. It looks like Jesus Navas starts at right-back again, Fabian Delph slots into midfield in place of the benched Raheem Sterling and - well, look at this - Vincent Kompany is in for Nicolas Otamendi. It’s been a while since we saw City’s club captain in the heart of Guardiola’s defence. After a wretched time with injuries, this is only Kompany’s third league start this season and his first since November. Chelsea will be looking to punish any rustiness.
Team news
Chelsea: Courtois; Zouma, David Luiz, Cahill; Azpilicueta, Kante, Fabregas, Alonso; Pedro, Diego Costa, Hazard. Subs: Begovic, Ake, Terry, Matic, Loftus-Cheek, Willian, Batshuayi.
Manchester City: Caballero; Navas, Stones, Kompany, Clichy; Fernandinho, Delph; Sane, Silva, De Bruyne; Aguero. Subs: Bravo, Zabaleta, Kolarov, Fernando, Toure, Sterling, Nolito.
Referee: Mike Dean.
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Preamble
Hello. Back when the Premier League fixtures came out last June, it’s doubtful that Manchester City looked at this one and imagined that they’d be cast in the role of Tottenham Hotspur’s dream makers. This isn’t how it was supposed to be under Pep Guardiola and it didn’t seem that this is how it was going to be when City started the season by winning their first 10 matches in all competitions. Yet City fell off the pace at the top a long time ago, with their lack of attacking ruthlessness, defensive solidity and overall consistency holding them back for the third consecutive season. They’re in a fight to finish in the top four, Chelsea have sprinted off into the distance and so now it’s over to City to give Tottenham’s title challenge a leg-up by winning at Stamford Bridge.
If there’s a game that sums up this transitional and frustrating City side, surely it was Sunday’s 2-2 draw at Arsenal. The stage was set for them to emulate Tottenham by capitalising on Chelsea’s defeat to Crystal Palace, but despite dominating much of the first half and twice taking the lead, they took their foot off the gas in the second half and ended up dropping points again. They never quite convince, even though Guardiola has brought more intensity to the job than Manuel Pellegrini, and the result is that their main concern is holding off Manchester United and Arsenal in the battle to qualify for the Champions League when they really should be closer to Chelsea.
The irritation for City is the knowledge of how brilliant they can be at their best. They were scarily good for an hour against Chelsea in December and probably would have won if Kevin de Bruyne had made it 2-0 after being presented with a glorious chance. He missed, however, and Chelsea’s response underlined why they remain unlikely to choke. Conte’s men had the resolve to hang in the contest, the talent to expose City’s defence and the clinical touch in front of goal. They won 3-1 and City ended the game with nine men after Sergio Aguero’s comically inept foul on David Luiz and Fernandinho’s brouhaha with Cesc Fabregas. Yet Chelsea won’t be taking anything for granted, not after their strangely unfocused and uneven performance against Palace on Saturday. Seven points clear of Tottenham with nine games to, they are still overwhelming favourites to regain the title. But one of the attractions of watching City is their unpredictability. If they click, we could yet be treated to a proper title race. What will annoy Guardiola is that his team probably still won’t be involved.
Kick-off: 8pm BST.
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