CHELSEA will bid to stop the Manchester City juggernaut when they host the champions at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
Pep Guardiola’s men have responded to their 1-0 defeat to Arsenal with five wins on the bounce.
The run has seen them pass Tottenham to move top of the Premier League table.
And they appear to be finding their stride as they look to win a fourth successive title.
Meanwhile, Chelsea already sit 12 points adrift of City after a turbulent start to the campaign.
Despite another spending spree in the summer, the Blues have won just four of their 11 Premier League matches.
READ MORE IN FOOTBALL
However, the biggest of those came on Monday when they beat nine-man Tottenham 4-1 in a chaotic game in North London.
The victory moved Mauricio Pochettino’s outfit into the top half of the table and handed Nicolas Jackson a much-needed confidence boost as he struck a hat-trick.
But Man City promise to be a very different challenge altogether and one Chelsea may not yet be ready to overcome.
Here is all you need to know ahead of the clash.
Most read in Football
What is their form like?
Chelsea come into the clash off the back of their best win of the season – 4-1 away at Tottenham.
A victory against Man City would be their third in a row in all competitions.
However, they seemed to be building momentum last month when they beat Burnley and Fulham and drew to Arsenal, only to lose 2-0 at home to Brentford.
So can they prolong their feel-good factor for a little longer this time around?
Meanwhile, City have won each of their last five games, scoring 17 goals in the process.
But they are heading into a tough run of fixtures with Liverpool, Tottenham and Aston Villa all on the horizon.
So Guardiola will be keen to head into the international break in top spot.
What is the team news and any injuries to worry about?
Ben Chilwell, Romeo Lavia, Trevoh Chalobah, Carney Chukwuemeka and Christopher Nkunku all remain sidelined for Chelsea.
Armando Broja is expected to be available, but Jackson should keep his place in the team.
Guardiola has confirmed John Stones will be out for some time after picking up an injury in the 3-1 win over Young Boys in midweek.
Manuel Akanji is also set to be absent with a back injury, while Sergio Gomez and Kevin De Bruyne are still missing.
Who will be the star men?
Chelsea – Raheem Sterling
Raheem Sterling was a constant thorn in Tottenham’s side throughout the London derby on Monday.
The former Man City man, 28, assisted the first goal of Jackson’s late hat-trick as he sprung Spurs’ high line to finally break the hosts’ resolve.
He will be keen to impress against his former club on Sunday and could be the most dangerous threat to Guardiola’s side.
Man City – Jeremy Doku
Jeremy Doku is quickly becoming one of Manchester City’s most influential players.
The Belgian, 21, scored and provided FOUR assists in the 6-1 win over Bournemouth last weekend.
He already has four goals and six assists in 15 games so far this season.
And with Kevin de Bruyne still sidelined, the ex-Rennes man is stepping up as a key playmaker for the Treble winners.
What have the managers said?
Speaking after Chelsea’s win over Tottenham, Pochettino said: “I think we deserved to win. We forced them to make too many mistakes.
“I think Tottenham was better in the first 15 minutes and then I think we matched the game. I think our performance was good and start to force to make a mistake.
“I think everything that you can see within during the game I think was fair.
“And yes, we were talking before. I think we compare when Tottenham beat Liverpool like today, a similar game like today, a similar and maybe complain Liverpool and maybe it wasn’t. But today I think was everything that happened in the game was fair.”
After Man City’s win over Young Boys, Guardiola confirmed Stones’ injury.
He said: “Unfortunately, John, he’s out again. I feel so sorry for him because he’s an incredible professional and committed and he’s a big loss for us
“John is so important with what he does but yeah, recover, the season is long, and [he] will be back soon.”
When asked if Stones will be out for a while, Guardiola added: “Yeah, think so.”
SunSport prediction
Chelsea 0-2 Man City.
When is Chelsea vs Man City?
- Chelsea vs Man City will take place on Sunday, November 12.
- Kick off will be at 4.30pm GMT.
- Stamford Bridge will host.
What TV channel is Chelsea vs Man City on and can it be live streamed?
- Chelsea vs Man City will be broadcast LIVE on Sky Sports Main Event.
- Sky Sports customers can live stream all the action via the NOW app.
- Alternatively, you can follow SunSport’s live blog to keep up to date with all the action from Stamford Bridge.
What are the odds?
Match result:
Read More on The Sun
- Chelsea – 7/2
- Draw – 13/5
- Man City – 8/11
*Odds courtesy of Paddy Power and are correct at the time of publication.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
