Pundits were quick to call the title race over and you couldn’t blame them given the form Manchester City have been for over a year now. Liverpool and Chelsea were close behind until Chelsea’s unbeaten run came to an end after a defeat to Spurs and another to Wolves. Liverpool haven’t slipped up yet and instead have capitalized on in-form City’s shellshocking defeat to a under-construction Chelsea side and have taken first place with 42 points , while City are at 41. Close behind are Spurs at 36 and London neighbours Chelsea at 34.
Saturday saw a Premier League managerial masterclass in the form of Maurizio Sarri’s Chelsea. A smash and grab goal by N’Golo Kante gave the Blues the lead right at the stroke of halftime. Chelsea gained confidence and momentum and improved after the break, securing the win with 12 minutes left when David Luiz’s glancing header following a corner bounced in off the far post.
Aguerio’s clinical nature and De Bruyne’s creativity was missed heavily as the London side held excellent defensive shape for the better part of the 90 minutes. In form Sane had a poor game and was taken off by the 52nd minute while Sterling forgot his shooting boots at home. Although City weren’t too bad , they really needed someone who could finish the plenty chances they had.
Chelsea boss Sarri said later : “I am very happy with the win because it is not very easy to win against Manchester City or Pep Guardiola. I am happy with the mentality of the team in this match.
“It is difficult for us to find motivation but when we have it, we are a very strong team. Today we played with a very good level of application, determination and the right level of aggression.
“My players have to continue like this. We started well in the second half and in the end we deserved to win.”
All in all , the title race is on.
