Chelsea vs Manchester City predictions: Citizens to extend superb Blues record
- Chelsea have lost their last six meetings against Manchester City without scoring
- City have won their last five in all competitions
- Recommended bet: Manchester City to win to zero
Chelsea claimed a dramatic 4-1 victory over Tottenham on Monday but will require further improvement to have any chance of beating Manchester City on Sunday.
Since the high of beating City in the 2021 Champions League final, the Londoners have struggled to six straight defeats without scoring against Pep Guardiola's side.
After a mixed run ahead of the October international break, the champions have come to life and are eyeing a sixth straight victory in all competitions heading into the November hiatus.
Tuesday's 3-0 win over Young Boys sealed their spot in the knockout stages of the Champions League. The ease with which they cruised past their Swiss opponents means they will be fresh to take on Mauricio Pochettino's young team, who are still to find any real rhythm this season.
Team news
Chelsea are still without Christopher Nkunku (knee) and Romeo Lavia (ankle) but both are expected to return after the upcoming international break.
Trevoh Chalobah (thigh), Carney Chukwuemeka (knee), Ben Chilwell (thigh) and Wesley Fofana (knee) remain out. However, Armando Broja is ready to return, and Reece James should feature despite withdrawing from England's upcoming games against Malta and North Macedonia to work on his fitness.
City's John Stones is also set to sit out for the Three Lions after coming off against Young Boys due to a muscle injury, while Kevin De Bruyne remains sidelined after having surgery on the hamstring issue he picked up in August.
However, the signs are good that Stones' defensive colleague Manuel Akanji will feature, despite withdrawing in the warm-up in midweek through a back issue.
The stats
Chelsea's victory at Tottenham was just their fourth in the Premier League this season and they have failed to win their last four at home.
Three of those reverses were defeats to zero, going down 1-0 to both Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa and 2-0 to Brentford.
The Citizens have won their last five in all competitions, with their two away games during that run producing a 3-1 win at Young Boys and a 3-0 victory across the city at Old Trafford.
Norway international Erling Haaland has scored seven times in his team's recent quintet of victories, taking him to 18 for the season for club and country.
Prediction
Pochettino will be buoyed by beating Spurs on Monday but that result came with caveats, with three of Chelsea's goals coming from the 75th minute onwards and aided by some ludicrous Spurs defending after the Lilywhites had been reduced to nine men.
City are unlikely to be as charitable and the ruthlessness with which they have dispatched United, Bournemouth and Young Boys over the last fortnight appears ominous for the Blues and, frankly, the rest of Europe.
Their flawless recent record against Chelsea will also boost belief that they can get a result at Stamford Bridge, while their current mood suggests that they will be ready to control the game from the opening whistle.
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