premier league
Manchester City have never experienced a more dominating moment – or a more enticing one. Third consecutive Premier League title and fifth in six seasons? Check over. It was sealed when Arsenal lost at Nottingham Forest on Saturday night – what happened here on the pitch felt secondary.
It was a sky-blue party, starting at the Etihad when the Chelsea players lined up to give the champions a pre-game honor guard, to the 24-hour invasion of the pitch by thousands of City fans. The lack of danger or drama didn’t make the trophy presentation any less enjoyable for captain Ilkay Gundogan or anyone associated with the club.
Manchester City vs Chelsea: Premier League – live
City could reflect on how they faltered Arsenal in stoppage time after falling eight points down in mid-January and again in early April, despite playing a game fewer at the time. Arsenal weren’t able to live with City’s strength in all areas or their pulverizing power.
City could be happy about the hat-trick – something only four top-flight clubs have managed to do so far. But at heart, the FA Cup finals against Manchester United and the Champions League finals against Internazionale are all about what they’re going to do in the coming weeks.
“If we want to be among the best teams, we have to win the Champions League,” said Pep Guardiola on the eve of this game. That the manager is willing to say so seems to reflect his confidence. And why not? City will come into play against Inter as overwhelming favorites for a number of very good reasons. The story attracts them.
City won here thanks to a Julián Álvarez goal in the 12th minute. Frank Lampard is one of only two visiting coaches to have achieved a result at Etihad this season – the 0-0 draw against his previous club, Everton; City’s other losing game was the loss to Brentford. But Lampard’s team was just the backdrop to City’s save. That being said, after winning the 2021 Champions League final, Chelsea have now lost to City on six consecutive occasions in all competitions and haven’t scored in any of those games.
A Manchester City fan holds up an inflatable Pep Guardiola during the win against Chelsea. Photo: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian
The city gets used to such occasions. Before the game, a six-piece band played on the way to the stadium, with city flags waving beside them, while a group of fans approached with a large loudspeaker, playing music and singing their songs. The drinking holes around the floor had a similar vibe, but in general it was pretty chilly and everyone was just enjoying the sunglass weather.
The celebrations had started the night before at the club’s training complex, where some players were watching the Forest game. They posed for a huge team photo with members of the coaching staff and by this point Chelsea’s visit was significantly downgraded and thoughts turned to the key to the City season – and what was to come.
Two moments off the pitch felt crucial. There was Guardiola’s unprecedented critique of his players and fans after beating Tottenham on January 19, the ‘Happy Flowers’ monologue as he attacked the collective sense of comfort at the time. And the bang with the Premier League’s 100-plus charges over alleged breaches of financial rules on February 6th.
City had lost at Spurs the day before and were five points behind Arsenal after one game more. They then went on to win 13 of their 14 league games up to this game, the other draw at Forest, and in the process also reached the two cup finals. Did City feel as connected to the external threat as they did to Guardiola’s internal motivation?
The game took place against a background of noise and triumph; also a bit of posing. Guardiola rotated heavily, only starting Kyle Walker and Manuel Akanji from the eleven he currently favors and it was certainly the bench of some substitutes. Short message: The backups can also play along a bit.
City dominated the first half hour. Cole Palmer made a brilliant start on the left wing and it was his pass that made Álvarez break through. Wesley Fofana had played a loose pass out of Chelsea’s defense and City substituted with typical threat.
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Guardiola’s team had more chances, one of which Phil Foden missed by inches after a lovely first touch from a high ball forward and when Chelsea almost equalised, it didn’t seem in keeping with the overall tone. Kai Havertz failed in the 34th minute in a one-on-one against Stefan Ortega; Then Conor Gallagher headed a cross from Lewis Hall against the post.
Chelsea are expected to finish bottom of the table for the first time since 1995/96. Incidentally, this was the season in which City were relegated after saving the ball at the corner flag in the closing moments of their last game; They had mistakenly believed that a draw would keep them in the league. Those were the days when City found new and novel ways to punish their fans. That’s a different story now.
The second half was changeable. Kalvin Phillips headed against a post. A shot from Raheem Sterling was cleared off the line by substitute John Stones at the other end, despite an offside flag being raised against the Chelsea striker. Álvarez saved a goal from VAR for a Riyad Mahrez handball and Erling Haaland missed a good chance to great applause. César Azpilicueta almost equalized at the last second. Now for United and Inter.
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