Chelsea vs Manchester City

Chelsea and Manchester City are set to lock horns at Stamford Bridge in the first of what’s expected to be a blockbuster double-header, with both sides desperate to bounce back from the previous Premier League round.

Chelsea spurned a 1-0 halftime lead in a drab 1-1 draw at relegation-threatened Nottingham Forest to kick things off in 2023 on the back foot, losing further ground on the Premier League top-four pace. Having tumbled to tenth in the standings, the ‘Pensioners’ now trail fourth-placed Manchester United by a whopping ten points, meaning anything other than a victory here would land a fatal blow to their Champions League hopes. However, Graham Potter’s men have suffered just one defeat in their last 11 Premier League games at Stamford Bridge (W6, D4), losing 1-0 to Arsenal in November. That reverse incidentally accounts for Chelsea’s solitary scoring blank in their 23 previous home league clashes.

On the other hand, after winning their last Premier League away H2Hs against Chelsea, Manchester City could become the third club in the competition’s history to win three consecutive matches at Stamford Bridge. Having pulled off a league double over the ‘Blues’ last season, Pep Guardiola’s lads will be confident of starting an 11th straight calendar year with a Premier League triumph. Adding to this sentiment, the ‘Cityzens’ have only lost one of their last 25 Premier League outings on the road (W18, D6), going down 1-0 at Liverpool in October. They have since won back-to-back away league fixtures and could make it three in a row outside the Etihad Stadium for the first time since May 2022. Delivering action from the get-go, Man City have opened the scoring in six of their seven Premier League travels in 2022/23 (W4, D2).