Manchester City came away deserved 3-0 victors against a dismal Chelsea at the Etihad on Sunday. The result might already prove to be a vital one in the outlook of the 2015-16 title race.
City started off brilliantly in the match, which saw them completely dominate the first-half. After a couple of smart saves by Asmir Begovic early on, it was Serio Aguero who finally broke the deadlock with a calm and composed finish from inside the box.
The second 45 minutes saw a slight improvement from the champions and they could have been level if not for a controversial offside decision which ruled out a Ramires goal. City took complete advantage of Chelsea’s failure to equalise and they extended their lead when Vincent Kompany brushed-off Branislav Ivanovic to head past a helpless Begovic. As Chelsea threw men forward towards the end, a quick counter-attack saw Fernandinho release an unstoppable shot to make it 3-0 to the home side, wrapping-up the three points for the Sky Blues.
The win resulted in City retaining their pole position after a fantastic start to the season. Manuel Pellegrini was clearly elated with his side’s performance after such a strong and dominating display, while a disappointing start by the defending champions continues. Still extremely early, it would be cruel to write Chelsea off just yet. But judging by Sunday’s performance, Jose Mourinho and his team will have to drastically improve if they want to retain their crown.
Formations
Both teams started off in a similar 4-2-3-1 formation. City made one change to the side that beat West Brom 3-0 in the opening week as Sergio Aguero come in for Wilfried Bony. David Silva took up a position behind the striker, while Raheem Sterling and Jesus Navas started on the wings. After a strong defensive performance, Pellegrini decided against changing his defence, Yaya Toure and Fernandinho also remained the first choice pairing in centre-midfield
Thibaut Courtois’ red card against Swansea forced Mourinho to include Begovic in the starting XI. The Blues made one more change to the side, bringing Ramires in for Oscar to provide a more defensive cover in midfield. The change meant that Cesc Fabregas moved to a more attacking position behind Diego Costa.
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Mourinho’s defensive woes
Sunday’s clash made it evidently clear that Chelsea need to quickly sort out reinforcements at the back. In a monumental strategic move, Jose Mourinho substituted captain John Terry at half-time, replacing him with Kurt Zouma in an attempt to stem the flow of shots coming from Aguero. The home attackers gave the Chelsea defence a torrid time, finding ways in-behind on numerous occasions with ease. None of the back-four looked to be comfortable during the game and were shadows of the tightly wound up unit that dominated last season. Ivanovic seems to have lost some pace, while Cesar Azpilicueta is now quite vulnerable on his weaker side. The signing of Ghanaian youngster Baba Rahman might bolster the line a bit, but five goals conceded in two games indicates that the blue defence will have to greatly improve.
Silva also continues to shine
The Spaniard had a fantastic outing in the season opener against West Brom and continued his fine form against City’s title rivals. It seemed like Silva was involved in every one of the attacks and continued to find gaps in an otherwise very tight Chelsea defence. He was the creator for two of the goals, firstly picking out Kompany from a corner and then making a vital interception to set up Fernandinho for City’s third of the night. The 29-year-old completed 81% of his passes in the course of the match, creating three goal-scoring opportunities in the process. If there was any doubt that Silva is the Premier League’s best attacking-midfielder, he is doing extremely well to prove his critics wrong.
Not the same Diego
Chelsea’s hitman has not been his usual self this season and it now looks like the Premier League defenders have found a way to cope with the fierce Spaniard. Fighting fire with fire seems to subdue the Costa, which Kompany and Mangala did with success. Injury problems look like they are taking a lot out of the potential performance, but the manager, as well as Costa himself will have to work hard to get out of this rut. The Blues will undoubtedly need another 20-goal season from the 26-year-old, but the question remains whether he can re-adapt his approach and return to the physical dominance which lead to so many scoring opportunities.
Manchester City conclusion
After two games, City have six goals and six points to their name and are yet to concede a goal. They remain top of the table and it seems as if they have last season’s top scorer fit and firing again. Another positive for is thee improvements in defence from last season. Kompany and Mangala look to have formed an unbreakable partnership, while Aleksandar Kolarov’s performances would have clearly put him ahead of Gael Clichy in the pecking order. Next up for City is a tricky away trip to Everton.
Chelsea conclusion
For Chelsea, nothing seems to be going right at the moment. A home draw and a Courtois red card capped-off a disappointing start for the Champions. If that was not enough, the media hype surrounding the club’s medical staff has only made matters worse. And after a crippling defeat to fellow title contenders City, Chelsea’s woes only seem to increase. Their disappointing start to the season has been much due to their defensive vulnerabilities. Replacing Terry with Zouma at half-time against City made it clear that Mourinho was not happy with his defenders, who have been poor in both the opening games. An away visit at West Brom next week awaits the Blues.
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