Manchester City vs Chelsea

Etihad Stadium forms the backdrop for a lopsided Premier League showdown between perennial champions Manchester City and a downtrodden Chelsea side.

Manchester City’s pursuit of a historic treble is off and running after a 4-0 home romping of Real Madrid in the return leg of their Champions League semi-final tie helped them set up a second grand final appearance in three years. Champions-elect Man City have secured a third consecutive Premier League title for the first time in the club’s history following an eye-catching run of 11 straight league victories, bookended by a 3-0 demolition of Everton last weekend. Back to the Etihad, where they’ve won all 16 competitive games in 2023, the ‘Citizens’ are looking to make history this week and become only the second team to beat Chelsea four times in a single season. Pep Guardiola’s men have won their last three Premier League H2Hs by an identical 1-0 scoreline and could make it four wins in a row against the ‘Blues’ in the competition for the first time.

There’s a feeling Chelsea cannot do much to prevent that from happening despite going from six consecutive defeats at the beginning of Frank Lampard’s interim tenure to back-to-back matches without losing (W1, D1). Worryingly for the ‘Blues,’ they’ve failed to win any of their 14 top-flight encounters against sides starting the round above them in the Premier League table since the commencement of last season (D4, L10). Furthermore, the visitors have managed just two wins on their previous 15 league travels (D3, L10) and are without a clean sheet in the last six in a row since a goalless draw at Liverpool in late January. But with three of their four most recent away league games yielding the same 3-1 scoreline (W1, L3), there’s the potential for a goal-glutted affair.