In
part three of our series, we look at seven more reasons which set Chelsea
and Man City apart from the pack...
After joining Chelsea in January 2014, Nemanja Matic announced his arrival
with a towering performance on his first Premier League start in the 1-0 win
against Manchester City. The 26-year-old made more tackles and covered more
ground (7.8 miles) than any of his team-mates on that chilly February
evening at the Etihad, also hitting the crossbar with a powerful drive from
distance.
Matic has been a crucial part of Jose Mourinho's first XI ever since, with
the manager saying in November: "Please give him (the credit) he deserves.
He was signed in the most difficult market for players so the second half of
last season was a space of improvement and adaptation for him. At this
moment, he’s a giant. Not for his size but for the way he plays. The man is
a giant."
The Serbian's importance to Chelsea was emphasised by his absence against
Newcastle in December, when the Blues suffered their first defeat of the
season in any competition. In Matic's 21 top-flight starts in 2014/15,
Chelsea have conceded just 13 times (the 5-3 defeat to Tottenham an
outlier), with that total extending to only 24 strikes in the 37 matches he
has started over the past 12 months.
N is for Navas
Although somewhat inconsistent, the speed and trickery of Jesus Navas proved
a key ingredient in City's title success last season, with Gary Neville and
Jamie Carragher highlighting the 'natural' width he offers on the right -
something few other Premier League teams possess.
The Spaniard's six assists in the current campaign - more than any other
City player - have perhaps gone under the radar but hint at the threat he
can offer at Stamford Bridge. With Filipe Luis limping off on Tuesday - and
potential doubts over Branislav Ivanovic's "blood-soaked" foot - Manuel
Pellegrini may look to utilise Navas' pace down the flank to gain an
advantage.
As Carragher has previously commented on Sky Sports, by hugging the
touchline the winger creates a huge gap between the full-back and
centre-back that Sergio Aguero and David Silva can look to exploit.
O is for Organisation
While Liverpool have struggled to integrate a host of new signings, Arsenal
have been hamstrung by injury problems, and Manchester United a bit of both,
Chelsea and City have largely remained the well-drilled machines of last
year's title battle.
The tactical organisation of Jose Mourinho and Manuel Pellegrini is
obviously a key factor, with the stats pointing to two cohesive outfits
comprised of individuals well-versed in their specific roles. It is
particularly telling that Chelsea have faced the fewest number of shots on
target in the Premier League (60), while only the Blues and Southampton (61)
stand above City (69).
Chelsea have also amassed the highest number of clean sheets (11) and
conceded the second-fewest total from set pieces (three) behind Southampton,
with Mourinho's meticulous organisation yielding a hugely impressive record
against his top-four rivals.
P is for Pellegrini
Despite holding a relatively poor record in matches against Jose Mourinho,
Manuel Pellegrini had the last laugh in his first year in England as he
guided City to a league and Capital One Cup double and his first silverware
in Europe.
"I'm just so happy for the manager as well because it's his first title in
Europe, so it's amazing. Amazing job," said Samir Nasri during City's
celebrations. "He remained calm the whole season in the same way for us to
play attractive football and that's what we did all year. It was a pleasure
to work with him."
Pellegrini has won only two of 11 meetings with Mourinho, with his
counterpart raising his total to seven with back-to-back league victories
for Chelsea in 2013/14. However, the Chilean's switch to a 4-4-2 system
following his arrival in 2013 allowed City to play the most exciting
attacking football in the division as they out-scored their rivals by 31
goals.
That translated to a four-point gap in the final standings as Pellegrini's
calm persona helped City keep their cool in the run-in. The champions won
their last five matches to claim the title after laying the foundations for
their challenge by taking 34 points from a possible 36 between November and
January.
Mourinho, meanwhile, saw his team blow their chances with three defeats to
struggling Aston Villa, Crystal Palace and Sunderland in six matches over
March and April, as well as a goalless draw at home to Norwich in May.
Q is for Quotable
Pellegrini has done well to avoid controversy in his first 18 months at
City, but Mourinho has a knack of causing the Chilean to bristle, adding a
little extra spice to Saturday's fixture.
It perhaps stems back to the pair's time in Spain when Mourinho said after
replacing Pellegrini at Real Madrid: "If Madrid were to fire me, I wouldn’t
go to Malaga. I’d go to a top-level team in Italy or England. Second place
(Pellegrini's highest finish at the Santiago Bernabeu) is just the first
loser."
The two managers clashed again over FFP last season, with Mourinho defending
his "little horse" and suggesting his City counterpart needed a calculator
following Pellegrini's claim that Chelsea were "the team that spends the
most money in the last 10 years (and) the team that spends the most money
this year, so a little bit rich".
”It would be very disappointing if either of the two teams who scored the
most goals don’t win the league," said Pellegrini as he delivered another
barb in April. "For football, for the fans, for everyone it would be
disappointing. I think that the most attractive football, the more goals you
can score, should be rewarded. I’m not saying it’s not important to defend
very well because, of course, football is about attacking and defending. But
big teams must play as big teams.”
Mourinho has clearly been left unimpressed and, should Chelsea and City
become embroiled in a heated battle at the Bridge, we can expect more bitter
remarks between the two coaches.
As Iain Dowie once said "bouncebackability" is an invaluable quality for any
Premier League team, and Chelsea and City can boast a better record than
most in this regard.
Following their worst run of results since 2009 over September and October -
in which they won only five of 15 matches in all competitions - City mounted
a nine-game winning run to eventually go level on points with Chelsea at the
start of 2015. They may have slipped again since, but there is plenty of
evidence that the champions can recover.
The same goes for Chelsea, who followed December's thrashing at Tottenham by
putting seven goals past Newcastle and Swansea without reply, and then
progressed to the Capital One Cup final against Liverpool despite the shock
of FA Cup defeat to Bradford.
S is for Silva
No player has made more Premier League assists than Silva (41) since he
moved to the Etihad in 2010, with the Spaniard leading the chart with 15
when City won the title in 2011/12.
The playmaker has only managed two in the current campaign - compared to 15
for Cesc Fabreags - but Chelsea would be wrong to underestimate his
potential impact on Saturday. There are few players who possess Silva's
guile and ability to carve open a defence, while his recent stint supporting
James Milner in attack - which yielded four goals in three games -
demonstrated the 29-year-old's versatility.
If Chelsea are to triumph at Stamford Bridge and move eight points clear,
Nemanja Matic will need to keep a close eye on Silva.
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