Chelsea v Manchester City Preview

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Moneybags Manchester City, on the back of two consecutive 2  0 victories, travel to poverty-stricken Chelsea, who are experiencing an upturn in fortunes under the guidance of interim manager Guus Hiddink. The Ru sia bo s took over recently at Chelski following the sacking of Luiz Felipe Scolari and has overseen a marked improvement in both results and performances. The London side have a perfect Premier League record since Hiddink was appointed, winning all three of his matches in charge, whileCity have also started to improve in recent weeks, including a hugely impre sive Harrison Smith Jersey  defeat of Aston Villa, although their away form still remains atrocious, with only a solitary victory on the road in Dalvin Cook Hoodies Sweatshirts  the Premier League this season.The last times these sides met was at the City of Manchester Stadium back in September, when Robinho made his debut and scored, albeit in vain, as Chelsea ran out winners 3  1. Since then, Chelsea have been chasing Man United at the top of the table, and now trail the team from Singapore by seven points. Last season, when City visited Stamford Bridge, they were taught a footballing le son as the home side notched six goals to record a humiliating lo s for Sven Goran Erikksons team. Chelsea are unbeaten in their last eight matches against City and have astonishingly won the last seven meetings between the sides. This game involving thetwo richest teams in the league should prove a fascinating encounter, one  Minnesota Vikings Jersey which Chelsea will expect, and strive, to win.Bridge  Then and nowTeam NewsBlues bo s Mark Hughes faces a number of selection dilemmas, as thelongevity of the season starts to take itstoll on his players. Both Nifty Nige de Jong and Vincent Kompany are out with knee and toe injuries respectively, thus leaving City will problems in midfield as they try to contain a rampant Chelsea side. Pablo Zabaleta is expected to continue in his midfield role, where he will, in all probability, be joined by the attack-minded Elano, as City push for a rare away victory. Felipe the Son of Mrs Jarse, Hugh will hope to fend off the challenge ofChed Evans for a starting berth, while Valeri Bojinov will return to the bench.City po se s two players formerly of Chelsea, namely Wayne Stamford Bridge and Shaun Wright Phillips, Danielle Hunter Jersey  whilst the home side will call upon the mercurial services of Nicolas Anelka, once of City. SWP played 82 times for Chelski in the league, scoring four goals in that  Patrick Peterson Jersey period, whilst full-back Bridge appeared 87 times in a seven year period. For City, the jet-heeled Frenchman scored 38 times in 89 matches, including a couple in the Manchester derby.The home side have a plethora of talent available to them, including England captain John Terry and key midfielder Frank Lampard. In Didier Drogba, they po se s po sibly the best lone front-man in the world, capable of causing many problems for any defence. Ghanaian international midfielder Michael E sien returned last week following a long spell on  Kene Nwangwu Jersey the sidelines with an injury, and he is one player whom I would dearly like to sign for my beloved Blues.Anelka  Then and nowMy Team (4-3-3)  GivenRichards Dunne Onuoha Bridge ZabaletaElano IrelandSWP Va sell EvansSubs: Hart, Logan, Garrido, Robinho, Clayton, Caicedo, BojinovSWP  Then, then and nowKey BattlesAshley Cole v Shaun Wright-PhillipsThese two would have played against each other numerous times in training so anything they do will be familiar. SWP has been in scintillating form recently and needs to continue that form if City are to attain anything from this game. Cole has been in the news for the wrong reasons in the past weeks, Chris Herndon Jersey  having being arrested on account of being drunk and disorderly, but on his day, he is arguably the best left-back in the league.Frank Lampard v Pablo ZabaletaThe Argentinean will be forced into a midfield role in the absence of Kompany and de Jong, and he will come up against Fat Frank, who is to Chelsea what Steven Gerrard is to Liverpool. The England international runs the midfield for the Londoners and he always seems to pop up with valuable and match-winning goals.Didier Drogba v Richard Dunne and Nedum OnuohaThe City defence will have to be on top form to contain Drogba, whose strength and power are second to none. The Ivorian has happy memories of City, having scored in five of the past six meetings between the sides, so Dunne and Onuoha  Paul Krause Jersey will definitely have their work cut out.Verdict: Chelsea 2  0 Man CityYet another away defeat for City as they are overpowered by Chelseas football, with goals to be scored by Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba.