Manchester City-Chelsea is an FA Cup third round match and is played on Sunday at 17:30: likely formations, predictions, live TV and streaming.
The charm of English football is also this: three days later it’s Manchester City vs Chelsea again. In fact, the FA Cup gives Graham Potter’s Blues an immediate chance of a rematch, as last Thursday in the Premier League they surrendered 1-0 to the reigning champions of England, who came to Stamford Bridge thanks to a Riyad Mahrez goal.
The clash between the two big names in the English Premier League – who also contested the Champions League in the 2021 final in Porto – will, however, be played on opposite pitches. In the third round of the most important national cup, the Etihad Stadium, temple of the Citizens, will host the match, which promises to be full of interest despite the numerous changes in the line-up that the two coaches, Guardiola and Potter, are likely to make. In the London game, the Catalan coach managed to get to the bottom of a tight and balanced match until half-time thanks to substitutions and the ‘move’ Mahrez. The Algerian, who came on in place of Grealish, made it possible for City to take away three crucial points from the capital with one of his trademark kicks, allowing them to close the gap on Arsenal, now ‘only’ +5.
Chelsea’s infirmary is becoming increasingly full
However, it was not a flawless performance from the Citizens, who could have scored many more goals from the chances they managed to build.
Guardiola
For Chelsea, on the other hand, it was yet another rejection in an exam of a certain level. They may have done well to avoid a bigger defeat, but on Thursday the Blues conceded their fourth defeat in the last six Premier League fixtures, dropping to a disappointing tenth place. And the infirmary worries Potter more and more: not only Mount, who stopped before the match, but also Sterling and Pulisic were injured. Ten players are currently unavailable for the former Brighton coach. The only absences Guardiola has to contend with are Laporte and Ruben Dias. In attack, the Catalan coach will give a starting shirt to Julian Alvarez, while making Haaland a substitute.
The prediction
Manchester City have already been able to beat Chelsea twice this season and this challenge should be no exception. Despite the large number of second-tier players on the pitch, the balance of values continues to tip in favour of the Citizens, who are favourites to advance to the next round of the FA Cup.
The Manchester City-Chelsea line-up probables
- MANCHESTER CITY (4-3-3): Ortega; Lewis, Stones, Akanji, Cancelo; Gundogan, Phillips, De Bruyne; Mahrez, Alvarez, Grealish.
- CHELSEA (4-3-3): Kepa; Azpilicueta, Chalobah, Koulibaly, Cucurella; Jorginho, Zakaria, Chukwuemeka; Ziyech, Havertz, Aubameyang.
POSSIBLE RESULT: 3-1
