English Premier
2012-03-21 - Manchester City vs Chelsea
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: English Premier League
Wednesday 21 March 2012 - Kick Off 7:45pm
This game is live on TV
Manchester City
After holding a big lead in the Premier League, Manchester City have failed to take advantage of their position and find themselves 4 points behind Manchester United, albeit with this game extra to play. Roberto Mancini will want to shift the pressure onto his rivals as his side plays twice before United are back in League action and a chance to re-take the lead in the Premier League.
Manchester City lost their lead at the top of the table last week when they were beaten by Swansea at the Liberty Stadium and have had further pressure heaped on them with Manchester United's 0-5 win at Wolves over the weekend. The one factor that City have in their favour is their record at the Etihad Stadium where they have won all 14 League games, scoring 42 goals and conceding 6.
There is not a real feel-good factor at Manchester City following their defeat in the Europa League as well as losing their lead in the Premier League. The team have begun to really struggle for results away from home, but they have won their last 6 home games in all competitions, scoring at least 2 goals in each of those games.
Carlos Tevez is set to make his first appearance for the first team since walking out on them back in September, although he will likely sit on the bench. Joleon Lescott and Vincent Kompany are both set to miss out, although Pablo Zabaleta and Gareth Barry are in the squad.
Chelsea
Roberto Di Matteo has seen an upturn in fortunes for Chelsea since taking over on an interim basis from the sacked Andre Villa-Boas, but this looks like being the biggest test of his short tenure, even more so than the home game against Napoli. It's not a game that Chelsea can take for granted as they continue to try and bridge the gap between themselves and the Champions League places.
Chelsea are 5th in the Premier League, currently 3 points behind Arsenal in the final Champions League spot and 4 points behind Tottenham Hotspur in 3rd. The Blues have a 5-5-4 away record this season, scoring 17 goals and conceding 13, giving them the 2nd best away defensive record in the League so far.
Since the sacking of Villa-Boas, Chelsea have won 4 straight games in all competitions, progressing through to the Quarter Finals of the Champions League and the Semi Finals of the FA Cup. However, some of the results have to be put into perspective considering 2 of the wins have come against sides in the Championship and only one of the 4 games has come away from Stamford Bridge. Chelsea had lost 3 games in a row away from home before beating Birmingham, while they have won just 1 of their last 7 away Premier League games.
John Terry is expected to miss this game as he continues his recovery from knee surgery. The likes of David Luiz, Ashley Cole, Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba are all expected to be restored to the side after being rested in the 5-2 win over Leicester City.
Head to Head
Chelsea were the first team to beat Manchester City in the League this season, securing a 2-1 win at Stamford Bridge after recovering from one goal down.
City have won their last 2 home games against Chelsea in the League, including a 1-0 win here last season.
Prediction
This is one of those games that is a little tough to read as both sides have a few questions that need to be answered if they are to make their mark and pick up a vital three points in their respective chases.
However, I do still have bigger doubts about Chelsea and what they are capable of doing, issues that have been hidden with a close win over Stoke City (who were also down to ten men), two wins over sides from the Championship, and a win over Napoli that could easily have gone the other way with early chances for the Italians.
With John Terry missing from the backline, I think City are going to get chances and I think they have proven what they are capable of in front of their own fans all season.
The biggest issue is the absence of both Lescott and Kompany with the unreliable Savic at centre back and that is a situation that Chelsea will look to use to their advantage, although their lack of goals away from home is a big concern.
At just about odds-on, I think Manchester City are still worth backing at the Etihad Stadium where they have been so impressive for the most part this season and I am still not convinced that Chelsea have fully turned a corner in their season just yet.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Manchester City 3-1 Chelsea
FIXED ODDS BETTING TIP :
I'll back Manchester City -0.75 Asian Handicap @ 2.20
