Independent:
Manchester City 1 Chelsea 3
Antonio Conte's side make title statement with brilliant win at the Etihad
The visitors came back from a goal down to secure a excellent victory over Pep Guardiola's side, who saw both Sergio Aguero and Fernandinho sent off late on
Tim Rich at the Etihad Stadium
This was the first time Pep Guardiola and Antonio Conte had ever met as managers and, if this encounter is any kind of benchmark, it might become the Muhammad Ali v Joe Frazier of the Premier League
The match, which took Chelsea four points clear at the top of the Premier League, finished with the kind of brawl that Madison Square Gardens would have recognised. Deep into stoppage time, the contest between Sergio Aguero and David Luiz that had been one of the themes of the afternoon exploded.
The Argentine launched himself into a reckless tackle that provoked a mass confrontation between both sets of players. When the teams were pulled apart, Manchester City were down to nine men. Aguero was shown his second straight red card of the season which will earn him a four-match ban. For pushing Cesc Fabregas over an advertising hoarding, Fernandinho, who was also dismissed, faces any length of suspension. Manchester City finished a match they should have won beaten and embarrassed.
Had this been a boxing match, this would have been a knockout from the ropes. As he contemplated the match, Guardiola remarked that he was “curious” about the outcome. He sounded like a scientist about to conduct a laboratory experiment. You did not have to possess Guardiola’s knowledge of football to analyse the results.
Teams that do not drive home their advantages in possession and chances always risk defeat. Whether at Barcelona or Bayern, Guardiola’s rare defeats have come against teams that have known how to use the counter-attack and here all three Chelsea goals came from breakaways.
This was Chelsea’s eighth straight win and, like the last at home to Tottenham, Conte’s side had to come from behind against one of their title rivals.
This, far more than the Manchester derby in September, appeared like a contest between two clubs most likely to finish up as Premier League champions. Everything about the game from the first tackle by Nicolas Otamendi on Diego Costa that drew the first yellow card of the game to the cold-eyed way Willian put away Chelsea’s second felt intense. The game began at 12.30pm but the deep December gloom made it feel like an evening kick-off.
It was not the usual match at the Etihad Stadium, where the screens normally proclaim statistics showing that Manchester City enjoyed 70 per cent plus possession. This was an in your face encounter with space at a premium.
Injuries had forced both managers to make a change. The involvement of Fabregas, who had last started for Chelsea in September’s debacle against Arsenal, and Jesus Navas, who replaced Raheem Sterling, appeared to weaken both teams. In fact, both were involved in their sides’ respective opening goals while Navas should have had more than just the one assist.
The referee, Anthony Taylor, was surely right to dismiss both Aguero and Fernandinho but the interval had seen him booed off. There were two incidents. The first had come when David Silva had taken the ball past Gary Cahill, who had lost his footing and then appeared to touch the ball in the penalty area with his forearm.
Later in the first half, Aguero seized on a weak pass from Cesar Azpilicueta 35 yards out and then tried to take the ball past Luiz before falling. It appeared that Luiz had fouled him. It was a long way out but Luiz was the last man and Taylor must have considered a red card. To Guardiola’s fury, he gave nothing. The battle between the Argentine and the Brazilian simmered for the remainder of the match before boiling over completely.
Midway through the first half, Manchester City took control of the game with Thibaut Courtois tipping a fierce shot from Aguero over the bar and then, just as the interval beckoned, one of Navas’ less-threatening crosses was diverted past his own keeper by Cahill’s outstretched leg.
The quarter of an hour after the restart was the period when Manchester City ought to have won this game. De Bruyne forced Courtois into one save and then somehow deflected Navas’ cross on to the bar. In between Aguero had seized on a weak pass from Marcos Alonso, taken it past the keeper and only a diving block from Cahill stopped the second.
Almost immediately after De Bruyne’s miss, Chelsea equalised. A long ball from Fabregas was brought under control by Diego Costa, who outmuscled Otamendi, turned and shot. Ten minutes later, Chelsea broke away again. A long pass from Costa found Willian clear on goal and the Brazilian did not miss. Guardiola responded by throwing on every available striker but once more Chelsea waited for the moment to strike and Eden Hazard’s goal was the cue for the stadium to empty. Those who remained saw what was a great footballing contest disintegrate into an open brawl.
Manchester City: Bravo; Otamendi, Stones (Iheanacho 78), Kolarov; Fernandinho, Gundogan (Toure 76); Navas, De Bruyne, Silva, Sane (Clichy 69); Aguero.
Substitutes: Caballero (g), Sagna, Zabaleta, Fernando.
Chelsea: Courtois; Azpilicueta, Luiz, Cahill; Moses, Kante, Fabregas, Alonso; Pedro (Willian 50), Costa, Hazard.
Substitutes: Begovic (g), Ivanovic, Oscar, Batshuayi, Chalobah, Aina.
Referee: Anthony Taylor
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Guardian:
Chelsea surge past Manchester City as Agüero and Fernandinho see red
Man City 1 - 3
Daniel Taylor at the Etihad Stadium
When the dust settles on a tempestuous match, the finger-pointing stops and the bans are handed out, perhaps this will be the occasion when Chelsea made it clear their title aspirations are authentic. They rode their luck at times – discounting the own goal from Gary Cahill – and their opponents were entitled to be aggrieved about some of the refereeing decisions. Yet nobody could question the endurance of Antonio Conte’s men, their competitive courage and the tactical acumen of their manager.
Unfortunately for them, the occasion will be remembered more for the collective lack of discipline in stoppage time when City, to put it bluntly, lost the plot. Sergio Agüero, having already served one suspension this season, can expect a four-game ban after his scything red-card challenge on David Luiz. That, however, told only part of the story as the two sets of players clashed by the touchline and Fernandinho could be in serious trouble after reacting to some provocation from Cesc Fàbregas by grabbing him by the neck, levering him towards the crowd and eventually pushing him over the advertising hoardings almost into the laps of the front row of spectators.
Fernandinho wanted to prolong the argument even after being sent off and he, and City, might face further action when the Football Association studies the video replays and sees how stewards had to prevent it getting even more out of hand. Chelsea could also be fined given the number of players from the sides locking horns. To put it into context, the managers felt compelled to go on the pitch and Diego Costa, of all people, could be seen trying to calm down Fernandinho. Guardiola did at least recognise it was a shabby way to end the match – “I would like to apologise,” he said – but he was pushing his luck trying to argue that Agüero’s wild, two-footed challenge was not intentional and his own conduct was questionable, to say the least.
At one point, late in the game, Guardiola could be seen sarcastically clapping the referee, Anthony Taylor, for giving City a free-kick, even punching the air and sticking up his thumbs to give his act an extra flourish. Guardiola insisted that he would never be disrespectful about referees in press conferences, but he had already done just that in front of a television audience stretching to millions. As for his apology, it was hardly uttered in the manner of someone who genuinely felt contrition or embarrassment. He was seething, no matter how determined he was not to criticise Agüero or Fernandinho directly.
It was a breathless contest, laced with controversy, and in fairness to City they did have legitimate complaints, in particular the first-half incident when David Luiz could feasibly have been sent off for halting Agüero’s run towards goal. City were also denied two penalty appeals in the opening 45 minutes and Taylor spent large parts of the game with an incensed crowd reminding him of his alleged boyhood allegiances to Manchester United.
Ultimately, though, there was a reminder here that Guardiola’s team are going to find it difficult to win the league when they defend with so little cohesion. City have kept two clean sheets in the league and having taken the lead it must have been startling for their manager to see how they unravelled in the face of Chelsea’s superb counterattacking.
Costa began the comeback on the hour and the next two goals came from the kind of breakaway attacks that have exposed City on several occasions this season. At least there was some form of mitigation for Eden Hazard’s goal, with the clock ticking down and the home side left with no choice but to advance in numbers. Yet, from one penalty area to the other, Chelsea opened them up in a matter of seconds when the substitute Willian ran clear to give the visitors the lead. Chelsea played with the better structure, the clearer heads and a greater understanding of the wing-back system employed by both sides.
Hazard’s late finish confirmed an eighth successive league win, Chelsea’s best run for 10 years in a single season and that made it a desperately disappointing afternoon for City bearing in mind the home team led at half-time and had a golden opportunity, two minutes before Costa’s equaliser, to double their lead. Kevin De Bruyne could not keep his shot down, the ball came back off the crossbar and the remainder of the match merely re-iterated that Guardiola is still to get the balance right between attack and defence.
More than anything, City will look back to what happened on the half-hour mark when De Bruyne’s long pass sent Agüero chasing after two defenders and César Azpilicueta’s attempt to play the ball back to Thibaut Courtois fell short. Agüero would have fancied his chances in a sprint against David Luiz and his opponent seemed to realise it, leaning in with sufficient force to unbalance the striker, but also applying enough disguise to get away with it.
That was a key moment because if the free-kick had been given the next decision for Taylor would have been whether Agüero, running in diagonally 30 yards from goal, had been denied a clear scoring opportunity and, if so, Chelsea would have been down to 10 men.
Taylor had already given Cahill the benefit of the doubt after a handball inside the penalty area and the volume turned up again when N’Golo Kanté got away with a challenge on Ilkay Gündogan. Cahill’s own goal came shortly afterwards and Agüero might consider, on reflection, that Chelsea’s centre-half had suffered enough indignity without rubbing it in by patting him on his head as he ran away in celebration. Jesús Navas had supplied the cross and as own-goals go this one was spectacular – a twisting volley to redirect the ball beneath the joint of crossbar and post.
Costa’s equaliser was another demonstration of his ability to outmuscle opponents, on this occasion Nicolás Otamendi, before delivering a low right-foot shot past Claudio Bravo and from that point onwards it was the players wearing the darker shade of blue who looked like the more rounded side. Chelsea will enjoy the view from the top of the table.
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Telegraph:
Man City 1 Chelsea 3: Hazard completes stunning comeback as Aguero and Fernandinho see red in ugly scenes at final whistle
Chelsea stunned Pep Guardiola's side
Sam Wallace
By the time Pep Guardiola got onto the pitch in injury-time at the end of the game to try and broker peace between warring factions, he had already lost two of his best players to red cards and a bad defeat had metamorphosed into a meltdown of spectacular proportions.
Sergio Aguero’s attempt to put David Luiz into the front row of the Colin Bell Stand resulted in the Argentine’s dismissal and a ban that will see him miss four games, this being his second red of the season. Fernandinho had more luck putting Fabregas in the seats, grabbing the midfielder by the throat and pushing him over an advertising hoarding which meant the Brazilian was also dismissed.
It should be said at this point that Fernandinho completely fell for the trap set for him by Fabregas, a past master at these kinds of things. The Spaniard offered no resistance as his opposite number lost his cool, edging him back off the pitch with several lunges at his throat before depositing him over the advertising boards and ensuring his own dismissal.
Nine men on the pitch and Diego Costa as the unlikely maker of the peace as City reached boiling point – not exactly what the club envisaged when bringing in Guardiola. In a game of quality and drama, it was Chelsea who seized their chances on the counter-attack while City wasted theirs and lingered upon the denial of a red card for Luiz and a later penalty appeal that was rejected.
The City fans that stayed until the end booed Anthony Taylor and his assistants off the pitch although Guardiola himself stoically refused to blame the referee. “We didn’t win because we missed a lot of chances,” he said, not because of the referee.” The ruck at the end, he conceded, was “a pity” and he apologised but there was a lot more of the usual talk about his pride in his players rather than condemning their momentary madness.
There was also a suggestion that Guardiola sarcastically applauded the referee Taylor but the City manager was having none of that either. He is still muttering on about what he seemed to be suggesting was the injustice of the Nolito red card against Bournemouth so it might take him a while yet to get over what happened at Chelsea.
Instead these are the December days of Antonio Conte, whose winning march through the Premier League stands at eight straight games and now takes in the home turf of the most burnished managerial reputation of all the division’s big dogs. For that he can give thanks for a team that defends with the cussedness of the Chelsea of old, and in Costa a man who has been reinvented.
The Brazil-born striker exerted a control over Nicolas Otamendi that was so complete in the second half that you wondered if City would need to ask permission at full-time to have their Argentine back. For the first goal Costa swept past the City defender, for the second he spun him in the centre of the pitch and slipped in the substitute Willian, and on neither occasion was there a damn thing that Otamendi could do.
What a change in Costa, from the raging bull of the Jose Mourinho years to the man who, substituted near the end, climbed out of his seat in the closing stages not to fight Fernandinho but to attempt to calm his compatriot down. Costa tried in vain to establish some reassuring eye contact with his fellow Brazilian and eventually gave up as the midfielder ended up shoving his own club’s staff.
While there were periods of brilliance from City when they moved the ball hypnotically, Guardiola was right about their lack of an edge when it came to finishing. Kevin De Bruyne and Aguero both missed chances in the second half with their team in the lead. Another goal would have made it difficult for Chelsea, who grabbed their last, through Eden Hazard at the very end.
While City have great flair, Chelsea have the confidence of winners under Conte, patient assassins who bide their time, resist panic, and hit hard on the counter-attack. They won without the injured Nemanja Matic and in his place, Fabregas did what Fabregas does: hit some fine long and short range passes and got an opponent sent off. It was his first minutes since the defeat to Arsenal in September.
Alongside him was the ubiquitous N’Golo Kante and Chelsea started the game well. John Stones was trapped by Costa after nine minutes and very nearly embarrassed with a Chelsea goal. But it was Gary Cahill who had the misfortune of ending the half with an own goal as he tried to get a block on Jesus Navas’ cross from the right.
City were most aggrieved at referee Taylor’s refusal to send off Luiz on 30 minutes when a long ball from De Bruyne into the left channel that Cesar Azpilicueta failed to control ran onto Aguero. Luiz stepped into the space between the striker and the ball and the latter went down with much expectation all round that Taylor would give the penalty.
The second appeal looked stronger with Ilkay Gundogan going down in the area as he shaped to shoot and Kante moved to intervene. The crowd and the City bench were unhappy and they were still grumbling as the teams went in at half-time following Cahill’s inadvertent redirection of Navas’ cross into his own goal.
There were chances for City to put Chelsea away in the opening stages of the second half and then came the backlash with the unstoppable Costa at the heart of it. His first goal was of the highest class, taking a Fabregas ball on his chest, cutting back inside Otamendi onto his right foot before sweeping the ball in.
If that was painful for Otamendi the next goal was just as bad, Costa turning the centre-half in the centre of the pitch and slipping a pass into the substitute Willian to run onto and score. In the closing stages a big hit over the top from Marcos Alonso was chased by Hazard who left Aleksandar Kolarov in his wake to hit the third. City’s defence was a smoking ruin, and if there was any question as to their emotions, the injury-time dust-up left no-one in any doubt.
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Mail:
Manchester City 1-3 Chelsea: Diego Costa inspires second half comeback as Blues triumph at the Etihad
Chelsea came from behind to secure a 3-1 victory over Manchester City at the Etihad on Saturday afternoon
City took the lead shortly before the break when Gary Cahill deflected a Jesus Navas cross into his own goal
Cahill cleared Sergio Aguero's shot off the line before Kevin De Bruyne hit the bar from only two yards out
Chelsea hit back through Diego Costa, who controlled a Cesc Fabregas pass and finished low after an hour
Second-half substitute Willian finished off a counter attack before Eden Hazard sealed victory with a third
Sergio Aguero and Fernandinho were both sent off in a late brawl following a challenge on David Luiz
By Rob Draper for The Mail on Sunday
In the end, Manchester City lost their composure and Pep Guardiola lost just a little of that iconic status he brought with him to England.
From afar, he can seem coolness personified. Close up on Saturday, as he sarcastically applauded referee Anthony Taylor, clenched his fists and gave the thumbs up when a decision finally went his way, he seemed anything but.
Guardiola lost four games last season in the Bundesliga; he has lost four in two months here. And maybe that accounts for increased tetchiness and lack of gravitas.
For City were outsmarted on Saturday, as Chelsea increased their lead at the top of the Premier League. 'We aren't strong enough in the box,' said Guardiola, meaning both their defending and their finishing.
In his words, he was diplomatic and poised, apologising for the melee at the end which finished with two of his players sent off and refusing to blame the referee.
Yet his contemptuous actions on the touchline spoke louder. And his team followed the lead disintegrating at the end. Sergio Aguero was first with his awful challenge on David Luiz, for which he received his second red card of the season and a four-match ban.
Guardiola said he believed it was 'not intentional' but that seemed some way off the mark. Fernandinho followed in the subsequent brawl, for pushing Cesc Fabregas over the advertising hoardings and he may yet receive more than a three-match ban given that he had to be manhandled off the pitch.
Fabregas, who had slapped Fernandinho, and Nathaniel Chalobah were also booked but all around the Etihad it was clear City felt bruised, unfairly treated and hard done by.
'We did not lose the game because of the referee,' Guardiola said afterwards. 'And it was pity to finish like that. I apologise. I have to adapt, I have to learn. I am not here to change anything. I'm just in the process of understanding. It is completely different in Italy, in Spain, in England. I have to adjust.'
Certainly there is a sense that, with so many chances and having played so well for so long, City should have won this game. Having matched Chelsea's back three, City created a string of first-half chances for Aguero and a correctly-disallowed goal from Fernandinho.
Yet there was that nagging feeling that Luiz might have been sent off in the 31st minute; that City might have been awarded two penalties. But perhaps the gravest doubt in their minds is that they are all too easily picked off by more worldly-wise players.
Chelsea were that by some distance, a team with the mark of title winners. Playing on the counter attack, they pulled City apart on three separate occasions and that was enough to ensure the Etihad was half empty by the final whistle.
'It was a really important performance because when you have this type of game against a really good team, you have always to show the right attitude and the will to win and fight,' said Conte.
'Today we were losing 1-0 and we showed great character and great determination to find the draw and then to win the game.'
Conte will not acknowledge their title credentials just yet. 'I repeat we have to wait for the first part of the season because we know that this league is not easy. Now we are playing very well and we have good confidence, but it is important to work and improve because there is room to improve.'
Chelsea are well rested, having excused themselves from cup competitions. But they are also more streetwise than the rest. Diego Costa was outstanding again in the second half; Luiz, for all the controversy he would attract, utterly compelling as a leader. And they have quality: Costa, Willian and Eden Hazard's strikes were all excellent while Fabreags, back in the team, produced lovely assists.
'I am pleased for Cesc,' said Conte. 'This game wasn't easy for him. The last game he played was against Arsenal and then he had an injury. Now he has recovered and I am very happy for his performance. He must continue to improve.'
The Luiz incident was key. Kevin De Bruyne played a delightful 40 yard-ball for Aguero, who beat Gary Cahill. Luiz headed him off with a shoulder charge. Referee Taylor, unloved by City fans, looked as though he might award a free-kick to City but seemed to receive advice from his assistant not to. The Etihad erupted, aghast.
Soon Hazard almost scored on the counter. City were forewarned yet they did take the lead their performance merited on 45 minutes, when a poor cross from Jesus Navas saw Cahill inexplicably divert the ball over his own goalkeeper's head in a forlorn attempt to block.
Otamendi looks to the heavens after seeing a decision go against him during the first half on Saturday afternoon
At the start of the second half Thibaut Courtois saved from De Bruyne and Aguero stole in to steal Marcos Alonso's loose pass, but Cahill recovered to clear off the line.
Then came the sweeping, glorious move on 58 minutes which ended with De Bruyne six yards out with an open goal. He hit the bar — and Guardiola clutched his head in despair.
Two minutes later, Chelsea finally reacted. Fabregas produced a lovely, lofted ball for Costa. The striker took it perfectly on the top of the chest, rounded Nicolas Otamendi and shot decisively home.
From being overwhelmed, Chelsea suddenly looked as though they had a plan. Even more so on 71 minutes with another stunning counter-attack. City were pressing for the winner, but Guardiola's system leaves his sides extraordinarily open.
Chelsea cleared, Hazard found Costa who simply spun Otamendi with ease and played in Willian, racing goalwards. His finish was superb, his celebration initially ecstatic and then muted as he held up a black armband to pay tribute to his compatriots who died in the Chapecoense plane disaster.
City went on searching but Chelsea would have the last word, Alonso feeding Hazard, who sprinted away and finished clinically.
MANCHESTER CITY: Bravo 5; Stones 5 (Iheanacho 78 , 5.5), Otamendi 4, Kolarov 5, Fernandinho 6, Gundogan 5.5 (Toure 76, 6), Navas 7, Sane 5.5 (Clichy 69, 6), Silva 6.5, De Bruyne 5, Aguero 5.
Subs not used: Caballero, Zabaleta, Sagna, Fernando
Goals: Cahill OG (45)
Yellow cards: Otamendi (17), Navas (81)
Red cards: Aguero (90+7), Fernandinho (90+7)
CHELSEA: Courtois 6.5; Azpilicueta 6, David Luiz 6, Cahill 5.5; Moses 6, Kante 6, Fabregas 7, Alonso 6; Pedro 5 (Willian 49, 7), Diego Costa 8 (Chalobah, 81), Hazard 7 (Batshuayi, 90+4).
Subs not used: Begovic, Aina, Ivanovic, Oscar
Goals: Costa (59), Willian (70), Hazard (90)
Yellow cards: Kante (50), Chalobah (90+7), Fabregas (90+7)
Referee: Anthony Taylor
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Mirror:
Manchester City 1-3 Chelsea: Antonio Conte's side mount stunning comeback - 5 things we learned
Goals from Diego Costa, Willian and then Eden Hazard flipped a wild game on its head at the Etihad - but it could have been very different
BY DAVID MCDONNELL
Chelsea came from behind to emerge victorious in the top-of-the-table clash with Manchester City and make it eight Premier League wins in a row.
City took the lead just before half-time when Chelsea defender Gary Cahill put the ball beyond Thibaut Courtois and into his own net.
But the visitors levelled through Diego Costa on the hour, the striker then turning provider for William, who scored after a counter-attack at breakneck speed from Chelsea before Eden Hazard's late goals secured all three points.
City star Kevin De Bruyne missed an open goal from point-blank range with his side leading 1-0, with the midfielder's miss proving costly as Chelsea staged their smash and grab win.
The home side paid the price for some inept defending, particularly from Nicolas Otamendi, and have now failed to win any of their last four Premier League home games.
In an appalling finale, City had Aguero and Fernandinho sent off, as a mass brawl broke out following the former's late lunge on David Luiz.
Both sets of players became embroiled in an ugly melée, with ref Anthony Taylor dismissing both City men as the ugly scenes unfolded.
Aguero could now be looking at a four-game ban, having already been sent off once this season.
The City forward will be hit with a straight three-match ban, which could be extended because of his earlier dismissal against West Ham, a retrospective punishment following trial by TV.
Here are five things we learned from the lunchtime kick-off at the Etihad Stadium...
1. City need to strengthen in January
With skipper Vincent Kompamy plagued by injury, and Nicolas Otamendi and John Stones looking uncertain and vulnerable with every game, City have to buy a defender in January.
Stones was caught out defensively on a couple of occasions early on, while Otamendi was at fault for both of Chelsea's goals.
Guardiola must accept he has to buy in January if City are to have any chance of winning the title.
2. Luiz lucky to stay on
David Luiz knew exactly what he was doing when he body-checked Sergio Aguero as the City forward chased down Cesar Azpilicueta's under-hit back-pass just before the half-hour.
Somehow, Luiz got away with the blatant foul, which could have earned him a red card as he looked to be the last man.
Ref Anthony Taylor looked to go to his pocket for a card, before seemingly changing his mind.
Aguero was dismissed in stoppage time after exacting his revenge on the defender - revenge, perhaps, for their 2013 meeting?
3. Fabregas peripheral until key assist
With Nemanja Matic out with a muscle problem, Cesc Fabregas was handed his first appearance since Chelsea's 3-0 drubbing at Arsenal back in September.
It was a chance for Fabregas to show he can still perform when called upon, but he struggled defensively, although it was his his fine ball through to Costa that saw Chelsea equalise.
4. Cahill atones for own goal.
No player has scored more Premier League goals against Chelsea keeper Thibaut Courtois than team-mate Gary Cahill, who turned the ball into his own net here.
Cahill has netted twice against Courtois, along with nine other Premier League players.
But Cahill did atone for his blunder by clearing an Aguero shot off the line just after the break, which kept the game alive for Chelsea.
5. De Bruyne miss proves costly
Kevin De Bruyne has been arguably City's player of the season, with his goals and assists, but he produced a contender for miss of the season in the 56 minute.
After a wonderful counter-attack involving David Silva and Jesus Navas, all De Bruyne had to do was steer the ball in, but he managed to miss, clipping the bar.
That miss was compounded moments later when Costa levelled, followed by Willian's winner.
Player ratings
Man City: Bravo 5, Otamendi 4, Stones 5 (Ineanacho 78, 5), Kolarov 4, Fernandinho 4, Gundogan 6 (Toure 76, 5), Navas 6, Silva 6, De Bruyne 6, Sane 6 (Clichy 69, 5), Aguero 4
Chelsea: Courtois 7, Azpilicueta 6, Luiz 6, Cahill 6, Kante 6, Moses 6, Fabregas 7, Hazard 8 (Batshuayi 90), Alonso 6, Pedro 6 (Willian 50, 7), Costa 8 MOTM (Chalobah 85)
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Star:
Man City 1 Chelsea 3: Blues come from behind to stay top
LOVE him or hate him – you simply cannot ignore Diego Costa.
By Paul Hetherington at the Etihad
And how the Chelsea fans adore their rough-house striker, who turned this superb heavyweight contest on its head to keep Antonio Conte’s side top of the league.
The visitors bounced off the ropes to make it eight wins in a row thanks to Costa.
The Premier League’s top scorer struck for the 11th time this season to equalise, despite City boss Pep Guardiola claiming he handled the ball in bringing it under control.
Costa then set up substitute Willian for a classic breakaway goal, before Eden Hazard drove in the third in the final minute from Marcos Alonso’s long ball.
And all that after a Gary Cahill own-goal had put City ahead before the home side then squandered a series of chances.
The match then ended in chaos as both teams clashed following a Sergio Aguero foul on David Luiz.
In shameful, spiteful scenes, both Aguero and Fernandinho were sent off leaving City with nine men for the final few seconds.
For Guardiola’s side it is now four home league games without a win.
Despite that stat, City’s Spanish boss said: “Congratulations to Chelsea, of course, but also congratulations to my players for the way they played.
“I am proud of my team, because you have to remember who we were playing against.
“We created so many good chances and in the end it’s a case of, wow, how has that happened?”
Guardiola’s attention to detail saw the colour of the netting changed from black – as it had been for almost 10 years – to white.
But if that was designed to make the goals clearer, it did not work at first.
There was not a shot on target until the 21st minute when Aguero’s effort was turned over the bar by Thibaut Courtois.
City, playing three at the back like their opponents , then looked for a penalty but it was a case of the ball rolling into Cahill’s arm rather than deliberate handball.
City did get the better of Courtois in the 25th minute but Fernandinho was offside when he headed home Kevin De Bruyne’s right-wing free-kick.
There was controversy when referee Anthony Taylor took no action against Luiz after he appeared to obstruct Aguero, who was poised to break clear.
And there was more frustration for the City striker when Leroy Sane set him up with a close-range chance which he failed to convert.
The Argentina ace then headed wide from De Bruyne’s cross and City were denied a penalty after a challenge by N’Golo Kante on Ilkay Gundogan.
Despite their growing frustration, City finally managed a goal before the break.
In the final minute of the first half, Jesus Navas crossed from the right and Cahill put the ball into his own net past Courtois.
The defender will not have appreciated the pat on the head he got from Aguero.
Chelsea’s main threat on the break came from Hazard, who went round City keeper Claudio Bravo but failed to find a team-mate.
City, though, had chances at the beginning of the second half to kill the game off.
De Bruyne failed to get the better of Courtois, who blocked his effort.
Aguero seized on a back-pass from Alonso, went wide of Courtois but saw his shot cleared away by Cahill.
Then De Bruyne, amazingly, hit the bar from three yards out.
And it was almost inevitable Chelsea would equalise with their first shot on target. Cesc Fabregas found Costa with a long ball in the 60th minute.
The striker controlled the ball, cut inside and drove the ball home.
And after Courtois had denied Aguero again, Costa created Chelsea’s second goal.
He turned Otamendi and sent substitute Willian clear for a low right-foot finish.
In the aftermath of the Chapecoense tragedy, the Brazilian marked the goal by lifting his black armband aloft to display the message ‘Forca Chape’.
Hazard then finished expertly as Chelsea continued to look like potential champions.
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Sun:
WHERE THERE'S A WILL
Manchester City 1 Chelsea 3: Diego Costa, Willian and Eden Hazard score as game ends in an ugly brawl with Sergio Aguero and Fernandinho sent off
Argentine's horror lunge on David Luiz sparks fight on the field of play as Blues run out winners in crucial six-pointer
BY MARTIN BLACKBURN AND DAVE FRASER
DIEGO COSTA, Willian and Eden Hazard spared Gary Cahill’s blushes as Chelsea battled back from behind to beat Premier League title-rivals Manchester City at the Etihad.
Fernandinho had the ball in the back of the net in the 25th-minute, only to have his thumping header from a curling Kevin De Bruyne free-kick chalked out for offside.
But City eventually took the lead on the stroke of half-time as Gary Cahill deflected a dangerous Jesus Navas cross beyond the despairing Thibaut Courtois to send the Etihad crowd into raptures.
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De Bruyne missed the easiest chance of the season, smashing the bar from four yards despite the open goal and Chelsea quickly made them pay as Diego Costa out-muscled Nicolas Otamendi following a sublime ball Cesc Fabregas to smash home an equaliser.
Ten minutes later substitute Willian rubbed salt into the wound, as Chelsea launched a clinical counter attack, with the Brazilian rifling the ball into the far corner to take the lead for the first time and stun the home support.
Things went from bad to worse for Pep Guardiola’s men with just minutes left on the clock.
With City piling men forward, Hazard was lethal on the break firing behind a desperate Claudio Bravo to seal the most vital of three points in Chelsea Premier League title hunt.
With seconds left on the clock Sergio Aguero sparked a mass brawl with a horror tackle on David Luiz for which he saw red, while Fernandinho was also sent off for grabbing and shoving Cesc Fabregas in a bitter end to what was otherwise a stunning game.
STATS, FACTS, GOALS & LOLS
ANTONIO CONTE made a big call to put Cesc Fabregas into his starting line-up for this one – the Spaniard had only played 87 minutes of Premier League football before Saturday.
YOU couldn’t argue with those who predicted goals – the last three meetings between these sides last season had produced 12.
THIS has not been a happy hunting ground for Chelsea – they’ve won just one of their last seven Premier League visits to the Etihad.
THIS was the first time that the nets at the Etihad have been white for nine-and-a-half years. City insist it was nothing to do with Pep Guardiola being superstitious, more to bring them in line with the rest of the league.
REFEREE Anthony Taylor did nothing to dispel the theories about him having a soft spot for Manchester United – with a series of decisions against City in the first half
NO player has scored more Premier League goals against Thibaut Courtois than – his own defender Gary Cahill. He now has two – the same as nine other players.
DIEGO COSTA’S equaliser put him one ahead of Sergio Aguero in the race for the Premier League Golden Boot – 11 to 10.
WHAT a lovely moment for Brazilian sub Willian to score the second goal and then show his black armband for his countrmen who died in the Colombian air disaster.
YAYA TOURE got a nice welcome back from the home crowd when he came on as a second half sub – his first appearance at the Etihad since his exile.
MAN CITY: Bravo, Stones (Iheanacho 78), Otamendi, Kolarov, Fernandinho, Gundogan (Toure 76), Navas, Sane (Clichy 69), Silva, De Bruyne, Aguero.
Subs not used: Caballero, Sagna, Zabaleta, Fernando.
Goals: Cahill og (45).
Booked: Otamendi.
Sent off: Aguero, Fernandinho.
CHELSEA: Courtois, Azpilicueta, Luiz, Cahill, Alonso, Moses, Kante, Fabregas, Pedro (Willian 50), Hazard (Batshuayi 90), Costa (Chalobah 85).
Subs not used: Begovic, Ivanovic, Aina, Oscar.
Goals: Costa (60), Willian (70), Hazard (90).
Booked: Kante.
WHAT THEY SAID
Chelsea captain Gary Cahill: “We gave everything on the pitch. It was a test for us.
“It shows another side to our football. That’s eight wins now, which we can build on.”
Blues scorer Eden Hazard: “It’s a good game for us. We did well, it is not every year you can [win] eight in a row.
“To come here, [losing] at half-time 1-0, we did very well. The guys gave everything, the whole team gave everything.”
Chelsea defender David Luiz: “I don’t like to speak about these type of things [Aguero tackle].
“I want to dedicate this win to the people who died in Brazil. It was difficult to get my head together as I had some friends there.
“We just need to pray for the victim’s families.”
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Express:
Man City 1 - Chelsea 3: Hazard puts nail in coffin as Aguero and Fernandinho see red
CHELSEA kept their nerve and their discipline, and they have gone clear at the top of the Premier League table with a stunning and remarkable eighth consecutive victory.
By JIM HOLDEN
Manchester City could noit maintain cool heads or hearts --- and in the fury of defeat manager Pep Guardiola is facing the first crisis of his time in English football.
Having two players, Sergio Aguero and Fernandinho, sent off in a frenzied finale was bad enough for the celebrated Pep.
What will trouble him even more was how City crumbled in the heat of pressure during Chelsea’s second half revival.
If City had taken any one of a string of chances when they were 1-0 ahead and clearly in command of the match with some magical skills, they might have won at a canter.
The moment Chelsea fashioned an equaliser from Diego Costa in the 60th minute, the whole game altered.
Guardiola lost his cool too.
He remonstrated fiercely with the fourth official that Costa had handled the ball before scoring. Television replays showed that was not the case, and surely it wasn’t coincidence that City’s players lost their discipline just as their manager did.
Guardiola hinted at that, merely hinted, when he spoke afterwards, saying: “We played quite well against a good team, and it’s tough to lose.
“We missed so many chances and when Chelsea made it 1-1, my players thought, ‘Wow, how did that happen?’
“In our box we weren’t strong enough. But we cannot forget who we played today.
“Chelsea’s approach was really different, but that is part of the game. You don’t expect Chelsea to create 25 chances. They created three and scored three.”
Wow was the word that betrayed Guardiola’s dismay. His players could not cope with adversity, and they will need to regroup quickly if they want to sustain a title challenge this season.
For Chelsea it was just the opposite. They have huge resilience, and this was further evidence of the power of the revolution of spirit and tactics that has been delivered by manager Antonio Conte.
They had gone behind in the first half to an own goal just before the break, when Gary Cahill sliced a cross from Jesus Navas into the net.
There might have been many more City goals, as Aguero missed three decent opportunities in the first half alone and more in the second period.
Kevin De Bruyne was even more culpable, firing one weak shot straight at the keeper at the end of a swift counter-attack, and then somehow contriving to fire against the bar from three yards range when in front of an open goal.
That was in the 57th minute with City 1-0 ahead. Another goal would have finished off Chelsea.
Here was the reason City lost this game --- their own mistakes; missing simple chances to score.
Instead, fans and players wanted to blame referee Anthony Taylor who they felt gave wrong decisions against their side in contentious incidents.
The greatest anger was when Aguero tumbled dramtically after going shoulder to shoulder with Chelsea defender David Luiz chasing a through ball on the half hour.
Was it a foul? If so, it would have meant a red card for Luiz.
Was it strong clever defending or a sly cynical block by Luiz? Was it a real foul or a theatrically cynical tumble by the attacker?
You could see it either way --- and referee Taylor waved play on. And don’t blame the official when there is so much routine cheating and deception by players in all teams.
Chelsea equalised on the hour when Costa chested down a long pass from Cesc Fabregas, playing instead of the injured Nemanja Matic, and scored smartly with a low shot.
Ten minutes later they took the lead with a thrilling counter-attack goal. Eden Hazard took possession on the edge of his own box and fed Costa, who turned his marker Nicolas Otamendi with ease and sent Willian flying forward. The Brazilian scored with calm precision.
Hazard grabbed the third on another classy break, sprinting clear of Aleksandar Kolarov to shoot home.
The game finished in chaos when Aguero lunged two-footed at Luiz, caught him just below the knee, and was correctly sent off. Anger spilled over.
Chelsea substitute Nat Chalobah was booked for pushing Aguero, but the greater folly came from Fernandinho, who grabbed Fabregas by the throat and pushed him over the advertising hoardings.
A red card for him was equally inevitable.
It confirmed a first home defeat for Guardiola as manager of Manchester City, yet he was still talking about having “pride” in his players last night.
A more accurate comment came from Luiz, who said: “We showed our power, and it also shows our character that we didn’t lose our heads.”
Exactly.
MANCHESTER CITY: Bravo; Otamendi, Stones (Iheanacho 78th), Kolarov; Fernandinho, Gundogan (Toure 76th); De Bruyne, Silva; Navas, Aguero, Sane (Clichy 69th).
CHELSEA: Courtois; Cahill, Luiz, Azpilicueta; Moses, Fabregas, Kante, Alonso; Pedro (Willian 50th), Costa (Chalobah 85th), Hazard (Batshuayi 93rd).
Man of the match: DIEGO COSTA --- changed the match decisively with first goal for Chelsea and the creation of the second; the work of a supreme striker.
Referee: Anthony Taylor.
Attendance: 54,457
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