Football Special Report: Is Manchester City The Biggest Threat To Chelsea?
Chelsea is currently sitting comfortably on top of the English Premier League table. Manchester City, on the other hand, is in second place with a difference of four points from the top. Apparently, it is somewhat clear that this time Chelsea is going neck
to neck with Manchester City, rather than with their traditional rivals like Manchester United or Arsenal.
The same idea was also pointed out by Michael Essien, who plays for Chelsea. Essien, after a two goal win over Arsenal, suggested that Manchester City is their biggest rival. Essien is playing an important part in Chelsea’s victories, while he is also determined
to make up for the time he was outside owing to long injuries.
As Chelsea won their match against Arsenal, Manchester United also screwed up by failing to win against Sunderland. Liverpool lost their battle against Blackpool and is already out of the equation. Manchester City, on the other hand, has produced a series
of good results, which involved back to back victories, against Chelsea and Newcastle United. Due to this reason, it is being felt that City might be the only team who could prove to be a threat against Chelsea’s domination. Other teams are still lagging behind
and they do not possess the potential for a title challenge.
Michael Essien was happy with his team’s victory over Arsenal. The game was very well dominated by Chelsea, while they came out victorious with a clear margin of two goals. Therefore, Essien felt that his team needs to play like this in all their matches,
if they wanted to face City’s challenge to their supremacy. Essien was also impressed with City’s signings this season, which has turned them into a very strong squad.
So is it right that City has become the closest rival to Chelsea? Although, the difference is of four points, but on the plus side, Manchester City has played tougher matches, so far. City has already played against Tottenham Hotspurs, Liverpool and Chelsea,
while they got seven points out of a possible nine. Chelsea, on the other hand, has only been against Arsenal and City, getting only three points in the process. So, as far as the difference in concerned, City has a real chance to close down the gap.
The only question is that whether they would be able to sustain it or not. It is a long way to go in the English Premier League season, while Manchester City’s squad has no prior experience of such a long battle. On the other hand, Chelsea players have done
it before, which means that they know about what it takes to be a Champion. Although, Manchester City has a big squad to sustain for a whole season, battling for a top spot, however, many players have spent days on the sidelines. Therefore, when they would
be called for a real match, it would be a hard job for them to accomplish.
Roberto Mancini, the manager of City, has adopted a defensive style for his team. He likes to play with two defensive midfielders in the centre, with one striker upfront. This is more like Chelsea’s style of play, which makes them less prone to attacks by
their oppositions. However, this does not ensure maximum points in every match, because it also gives a team lesser opportunities to score themselves. This is a reason for the occasional draw matches by Manchester City. Chelsea, on the other hand, has developed
into a more professional team, who can easily balance between attack and defence.
Although, it would be somewhat unlikely that Chelsea would be replaced by City as the next Champions, but probably the Eastland side would be the only one challenging the London side for some time. Apart from that, it looks like an easy ride for the London
Blues in this season, while there seems to be a little challenge left for them in days to come.
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