FULL TIME: Manchester City 1-1 Chelsea Well, then. Jamie Jackson was at the Etihad. His report is in. Thanks for reading this MBM! Mauricio Pochettino talks to Sky. “A very good performance … I’m very pleased … it’s the spirit we want to show … we’re working for that … against the best team in the world, we need to feel very proud … we were so brave … in the first half we were very aggressive with the ball going forward … we didn’t concede too much … in the second they forced us to defend deeper … we created chances to win the game … we are a young team, we need these type of experiences to grow … it’s important now to keep the momentum … we need to feel it is possible to beat Liverpool … we will face the second-best team in the world … very close to Manchester City … the belief is the most important thing.” Pep gives his take to Sky. “A good game … the first half not so good … the second half really good … so yeah, 1-1 … you have to play 90 minutes at the top level but we played just one half … we are able to do whatever we want and we proved it in the second half … I played 11 years as a professional and scored 11 goals so I cannot give [Haaland] too much advice … next day he will score … [Liverpool and Arsenal] are two top sides … they are incredible teams … we dropped points, it happens … on Tuesday we play when nobody plays because we played in Saudi Arabia to be the best team in the world … not one of the best … so we continue.” Rodri talks to Sky. “We didn’t have a great first half, to be honest … we conceded another easy goal … we have to defend better … we have to be honest with ourselves … from then, it’s always more tough … in the second half we played amazing but it wasn’t enough … we made chances … I don’t want to talk about the referee.” Conor Gallagher speaks to Sky. “Slightly disappointed … obviously they dominated the game in terms of possession but we had a lot of chances to win the game … we defended really well … we’re disappointed to concede quite late but the point is a good point … we countered them well … it’s a fair result in the end … the game could have gone either way … we’ll take the point … it was a good performance … defensively we were focused … you could tell we were tired in the last bits of the game … the lads are confident … we’re going into the next game [the Carabao Cup final] with a lot of confidence and we’re excited for it.” It’s fair to say City’s equaliser had been coming, though. They had 32 shots at goal tonight, albeit with only five on target. They had 79 touches in Chelsea’s box, sent in 47 crosses, and enjoyed 71 percent of possession. The xG, because everyone loves that, was 3.07 to 1.58 in City’s favour. And yet a draw seems fair. Why? Chelsea had more shots on target with six from just nine attempts. You can do owt with stats. On the one hand, that’s good news for the leaders Liverpool, who now can’t be usurped at the top when City host Brentford on Tuesday evening. On the other, it’s not good news for Liverpool, as Chelsea receive a massive jolt of confidence ahead of next week’s Carabao Cup final. Swings and roundabouts, though one suspects on balance Jurgen Klopp will be more than happy with this result. See also Mikel Arteta, whose Arsenal side are scoring like maniacs right now. The run-in promises to be a million miles of fun. That result seems about right on balance. Manchester City had plenty of big chances but Chelsea defended doggedly … and Chelsea had their fair share of fine opportunities as well. It was another hugely entertaining match between these two attractive sides, to follow the 4-4 draw at Stamford Bridge in November. Either side could have easily won. Erling Haaland stares into the middle distance, and his frustration at dropping precious points in a three-way title race is illustrated when he finally snaps out of his reverie and pushes the Sky camera away. That was all great fun, but Chelsea will be far the happier right now. FULL TIME: Manchester City 1-1 Chelsea Well, then. 90 min +5: The ball did hit Colwill’s left arm. Some slight movement forward. Ball to arm? Arm to ball? VAR has a long look. It’s not happening for City. You’ve seen them given, but everyone was so close together it’d have been terribly harsh. 90 min +4: De Bruyne hits the corner long. Haaland wins a header at the far stick. Petrovic acrobatically punches clear. There’s some bedlam. A potential hand ball? VAR to take a look! 90 min +3: City probe again. Chelsea sit back again. Time for one last chance? Doku wins a corner off Gusto on the left. De Bruyne to take! 90 min +2: Casaedi now skittles Ake out on the left flank. A free kick. A chance to pump it into the mixer … but City aren’t hard-wired that way and play it short instead. They work the ball to the right for Walker, who blazes a speculative shot off target. Exactly what City didn’t want, and what Chelsea did. 90 min +1: The first of four added minutes sees Casadei tee up Nkunku for an attempted bicycle kick on the City penalty spot. Ederson deals with the fresh-air swipe. 90 min: Disasi heads Doku’s cross behind for a corner, when Petrovic was preparing to claim. Haaland meets the set piece with a weak header, and this time the keeper is allowed to go about his business in peace. 89 min: City pass. City probe. City pass and probe. Chelsea hold their shape. 88 min: Chelsea put a few passes together and Chilwell races after a long ball down the left. The flag goes up correctly for offside. The clock ticks on, and Chelsea’s best form of defence may well be attack. 87 min: Rodri crosses from the left. Haaland competes. So does Silva. Neither can win a header. Chelsea clear … though there’s nobody upfield, and they can’t get out. City will come straight back at them. 85 min: Silva is booked for clipping the heel of Caicedo. The hunter hunted. 84 min: Hats off to Lee Madden (80 min) for prescience. Rodri celebrated just as he did in the Champions League final. He knows how important that could be. And there’s still plenty of time to turn one point into three! GOAL! Manchester City 1-1 Chelsea (Rodri 83) The ball pinballs around the Chelsea box. It breaks to Rodri on the edge of the area. He sends a rising screamer towards the top left. It takes a small deflection off Chalobah before almost ripping the net. It was heading in anyway. That had been coming! 82 min: Casadei comes on for Jackson. 81 min: Haaland keeps the ball from going out wide right of the Chelsea goal. He boots it straight into Chilwell’s startled mug, then claims a penalty for handball. Nope. 80 min: Silva curls in from the right. A shot-cum-cross that floats harmlessly wide left of the target. City have done everything but score. “As a Chelsea fan, I genuinely think taking Palmer and Sterling off will turn out to be a bad decision,” worries Lee Madden. “They were our most dangerous players and we’re giving City something. To worry about. It feels like only a matter of time before City score.” 79 min: Haaland has missed two huge chances this evening. Very strange. You’ll not see the like of this too often. 78 min: City keep on coming at Chelsea, who are beginning to ask for trouble in sitting back. Doku crosses from the left. Disasi clears. Then De Bruyne picks up possession on the left. He curls a glorious cross towards Haaland, who flies in to meet it, six yards out … only to power a header high and wide left! The entire stadium waited for the net to billow, only for nothing to happen. What a miss! 76 min: Corner for City on the left. De Bruyne and Foden play it short, then switch it towards Silva, to the right of the D. Silva returns it. The ball sails wide left of goal. Petrovic ushers it out of play. 75 min: Silva jigs down the left and dinks a cross towards … nobody in particular. On the touchline, an agitated Pep is on the prowl. He’s earned himself the wrath of the fourth official for stepping outside of his technical area. No official censure, though. 74 min: Chelsea take a little bit of sting from the game with some patient possession in midfield. 72 min: De Bruyne crosses low from the right. Silva prepares to slam home from close range, only for Colwill to extend a leg and divert the ball back to his keeper. The defender celebrates his intervention as he might a goal. 71 min: Palmer is replaced by Chalobah, who comes on and passes on a tactical tweak: it’s time for Chelsea to switch to a back five. 69 min: De Bruyne wins a corner down the right. It ends up being a non-event. 68 min: Jackson strides down the left but can’t get past Walker. He pulls back for Fernandez – all friends again – but what follows is neither shot nor pass to Nkunku. Chelsea pass up yet another opportunity to put some navy-blue water between the teams. 66 min: Nkunku is found in the City box by Gallagher’s right-wing cross. Instead of making an immediate scoring impact, he takes a heavy touch and is blocked out of it by Akanji. The ball breaks left to Jackson, who prepares to shoot only for the in-rushing Fernandez to step in and lash a wild shot off target himself! Jackson is beyond livid, hopping around, effing and jeffing in the direction of his team-mate. As it turns out, Nkunku was offside initially, so had any of them scored, it would have been chalked off. But still. What a business! 65 min: Silva comes on for Alvarez. Then suddenly Haaland is sent into the box from the left by Doku. His rising strike from a tight angle pings off Disasi and is turned around the post by Petrovic’s strong hand. Nothing comes of the resulting corner. 64 min: The goalscorer Sterling leaves to pantomime boos. Nkunku comes on in his place. A reminder that Nkunku has previous here. 62 min: Rodri lashes a speculative shot wide left. Petrovic again takes an age over the restart, and this time goes into the book for time-wasting. 61 min: Doku crosses long from the left. Foden sweeps a first-time shot towards the bottom left. Disasi half blocks. Chilwell then denies the lurking Haaland. This is relentless! 60 min: Doku shimmies in from the left and dinks a clever ball down the channel for Akanji, who looks for Haaland in the middle with a low cross. Cleared. Then Palmer drags back Ake in the midfield, and goes into the book. 58 min: Rodri swans in from the left and thinks about shooting, only to be denied by Gallagher. Doku then probes down the same wing. Chelsea hold their shape. This game is poised perfectly and could topple in either direction. It’s great fun. Can these two play each other every week? 56 min: Gusto crosses low from the right. Sterling tries to ram home from six yards only for Ederson to parry brilliantly. The ball breaks to Chilwell on the left. Chilwell attempts to force home from a tight angle, but the keeper is all over that one as well. Ederson single-handedly keeps City within touching distance! 54 min: Ake’s presence out on the left earns a City corner. De Bruyne’s delivery is no good, and Chelsea flood upfield. Jackson has the opportunity to send Sterling clear down the middle, but overcooks the pass. Sterling cocks his head back in annoyance, a Pez dispenser of frustration. 52 min: Jackson makes good ground down the left and tiptoes along the byline. He flips infield for Gallagher, who like Haaland before him can only hack wide left. This surely won’t end 0-1. 51 min: City are getting frustrated, too. They break quickly, and Foden crosses from the right towards Haaland, free on the left-hand corner of the six-yard box. The ball’s not delivered at an ideal height, though, and he can only leap and sidefoot harmlessly wide left. Another big chance goes begging. 50 min: Walker drives into the Chelsea box from the right and steps across Sterling. He’s hit from behind. He goes over and wants a penalty. When he doesn’t get one, he’s beyond livid. VAR has a check but decides Walker went looking for it. City not happy. 49 min: Doku crosses from the left but can’t find Foden at the far stick. Goal kick. Chelsea, for the second time in a couple of minutes, take their sweet time over the restart, and a second-half pattern appears to have been set early doors. 48 min: De Bruyne flicks the free kick over the wall and inches over the bar. So nearly planted into the top-right corner. Petrovic was rooted to the spot. What an effort! 47 min: Caicedo, who is already fortunate not to have been sent off, first nearly scythes down an in-flight Doku – had the winger gone over, it’d have surely been a penalty – then clatters into Rodri. Next foul and he’s surely off. Anyway, it’s a free kick just to the left of the D. 46 min: City had 14 attempts to score during that first half. According to Sky, they only got two on target. Expect them to improve on that, surely. City get the second half underway. No changes. “Oh I’m still here Scott, with tin hat on,” writes David Wall. “Even those (i.e. everyone) who disagree with the argument would have to concede that it’s at least a more principled basis for penalties than the Premier League’s ‘plucked from the air’ 10 points.” Half-time essay, courtesy of David Wall. “Sean Dyche was on the radio last night and, seeing as this is the Investigation Derby, something they were talking about with him seems relevant to ask here. “There seems to be an assumption pretty much everyone that Everton’s penalty was harsh and will be reduced on appeal. But when you think about it, isn’t it actually quite lenient? If you play an ineligible player in a one-off cup game you have to forfeit the game and kicked out of the cup. Everton were playing all of last season with a squad that they couldn’t afford under the regulations. You could argue that, on that basis, all of their players were ineligible in every game they played. Why shouldn’t they have to forfeit every game? “If you understood it that way then, imposing it retrospectively, you’d penalise them the same number of points that they won last year. That’s a lot harsher than 10 points. “People will say that’s ridiculous, but if you look at how they do things in Spain isn’t it effectively the same, except they do things proactively and preventatively. If you can’t afford your squad then you can’t start the season, effectively forfeiting every game. Of course no one does that but rather adjusts their squad so that it is affordable under the regulations. That’s what has caused Barcelona such problems the past few years. “So there is international precedent for stricter penalties. Perhaps City and Chelsea should be concerned and Everton should think twice about appealing.” [NARRATOR: Having lit the blue touchpaper, David wandered off.] Half-time title-race catch-up. That’s not going to become a thing, is it. Still, here you go! HALF TIME: Manchester City 0-1 Chelsea Chelsea lead, and it’s a reward they deserve for their front-foot endeavour. City’s immediate response to falling behind suggests this story is far from over. These lads are serving up another highly entertaining game. 45 min +3: A cross swung into the Chelsea box from the left. Haaland wafts an uncharacteristically weak header wide right. 45 min +2: De Bruyne pulls the corner back for Foden, whose shot from distance is blocked. Disasi, a one-man resistance, clears again. 45 min +1: In the first of three added minutes, Alvarez takes a shot that’s deflected over the bar. Corner coming up from the right. 45 min: From the resulting corner, Jackson nearly flicks into his own net. Disasi is Chelsea’s hero again, heading clear off the line. Haaland tries to return it goalwards, but can only head out for a goal kick. City doing their best to bounce back strong. 44 min: Foden crosses from the right. Haaland prepares to head home from close range, only to be denied by the eyebrows of Disasi. What an intervention! 43 min: Chelsea deserve their goal. They’ve caused City plenty of problems in attack, and finally pieced it all together. On the touchline, Pep is fuming. His players will be getting the what-for at the break, you can be sure of that. GOAL! Manchester City 0-1 Chelsea (Sterling 42) Jackson exchanges passes with Palmer down the right and speeds off. He’s got Sterling free in the middle. He finds him with a low cross. Sterling takes a touch to his left then back inside, seeing off Walker, then curls a gentle shot over Ederson and into the right-hand side of the net! Great goal, albeit one Sterling celebrates with performative understatement. 41 min: Chilwell shanks a simple clearance miles into the air. Ake tries to take advantage by skittering down the left, only to be clattered by Palmer. The ball’s then worked to Alvarez, whose shot is blocked. Then Chelsea tear off on the counter, and … 39 min: The ball pings off the hapless referee, giving the frustrated City fans another excuse to vent. Their team were going nowhere at the time, to be fair to the ill-placed Andrew Madley. 38 min: The home fans make a bit of noise now, booing their disapproval as Walker sportingly knocks the ball out of play so Gallagher, down on his haunches, can get some treatment. Gallagher grimaces quite a bit, but gets back up and looks fine to continue for now. 37 min: Chelsea have done a good job of silencing the home fans. City not getting things their own way at all. Not yet. “Caicedo looks haunted by his transfer fee,” opines Sean Orlowicz. “Trying very hard to prove his worth but looks on the verge of breaking an opponents leg.” 35 min: Caicedo goes into the book now, though, for clanking through the back of De Bruyne. One way or another, he should be walking now. As it is, you’d imagine he’s just swanned into the last-chance saloon. Nothing comes of the resulting free kick, even though City load the box. 33 min: Fernandez scoops a delicious pass down the left channel to release Sterling on goal. With only Ederson to beat, Sterling takes a lame touch when he should be decisive, either shooting or rounding the keeper, and Ederson gratefully flops on the ball. Sterling smiles ruefully. Another huge Chelsea chance goes begging. 32 min: Doku is thankfully fine to continue. He’s aggrieved, nothing worse. 31 min: Caicedo goes sliding in on a prone Doku, and – let’s be generous and assume good faith – manages to accidentally stud his opponent’s shin. You’ve seen players sent off for much less; in this instance, the referee, standing right beside the incident, doesn’t show any card at all. Caicedo a very lucky chap. 29 min: Mauricio Pochettino engages the fourth official in deep conversation. Not sure why, but he’s animated. Pep Guardiola, standing nearby, looks uninterested, so assume it’s something and nothing. 27 min: De Bruyne and Haaland combine to win a corner down the left. Petrovic punches clear from the middle of a crowded box. Haaland goes over, and it looks like he’s been tap-tackled by Chilwell. But VAR has a look and decides there’s nothing much in it. That would have been soft as penalties get, though you’ve seen them given for less. 26 min: Palmer, quarterbacking from a deep position on the right, curls a high ball towards Sterling, in space on the edge of the D and ahead of the City back line. Sterling can’t chest down and stay upright, though, and the hosts clear their lines. 24 min: Akanji is hit upside the head while Disasi clears a high ball. A half-hearted shout for a penalty, but nobody’s heart is really in it. 23 min: Now it’s Chelsea’s turn to miss a huge chance! Gusto is released into acres of space down the right by Palmer’s precision pass. He crosses low for Jackson, who is one on one with Ederson. He should score, but takes a heavy touch that allows Ederson to smother at his feet. That’s absurdly good goalkeeping, and brave to boot, but he should never have been allowed to make the save. 22 min: Gallagher has the chance to release Palmer down the right but his weak pass is hooked clear by Ake. 20 min: Chelsea will be happy with the early exchanges, after that slow start. They look determined in attack and are causing City a few problems, especially when they nick possession and counter. Having said all that, it’s still City who have had the biggest chance. How on earth did Haaland miss back then?! 18 min: Chilwell’s inswinger is cleared by Dias. 17 min: Palmer again on the ball. No pelters this time. But Chelsea are on the front foot, and Jackson pesters Ederson, who snoozes and loses the ball. Jackson can’t shoot, such is the tightness of the angle, but he plays the ball back for Gallagher, who nearly releases Palmer down the right. Akanji is forced to extend a leg and concede a corner. 15 min: Palmer probes down the right, to little effect. He receives a light smattering of boos for his trouble. Very light, to be fair. 13 min: Sterling makes good down the left and drops a shoulder to reach the edge of the box. He tries a low curler across Ederson, but it’s easy for the keeper. That’s earned Sterling a few ironic cheers from his old fans. 12 min: City should be leading. Alvarez crosses from the left. Haaland rises highest, six yards out, and aims a header towards the top-right corner. High and wide. He’d bury that 99 times out of 100. You don’t see the big goalscoring genius do that too often. 11 min: Gallagher steals the ball off Alvarez and steams upfield on the counter. Jackson takes up possession and attempts to release Sterling through the middle, but his pass is a real clunker and the move breaks down. A big chance spurned with City light at the back. 9 min: Gusto brings down Doku on the left flank. Free kick and a chance for City to line up along the front of the Chelsea box. Foden swings it in. It’s half cleared. Alvarez has a shot that balloons into the air. Petrovic comes to collect but flaps. The ball breaks to Dias, who takes pity on the keeper and heads harmlessly straight at him. The keeper gets away with a big mistake. 7 min: Foden finds a little bit of space down the right and enters the box, but he’s forced to turn tail after Chilwell and Fernandez descend on him in a pincer movement. A gentle probe. Then Chelsea show in attack for the first time, Palmer and Fernandez combining to release Gallagher into the City box on the right. Gallagher whistles a low cross into the middle, but Jackson isn’t on point. The hosts clear their lines. 6 min: City haven’t exactly come flying out of the blocks, mind. An awful lot of patient – and patience-testing – ball-stroking around the back. An opening for the purists. 4 min: Chelsea were awful in the first half at Selhurst Park on Monday evening. They’ll hope to raise that particular bar today, but so far they’ve hardly had a sniff. City quickly establishing control. Their gaff, their rules. 2 min: City are on the front foot early, much as you’d expect. De Bruyne advances down the inside left and rolls infield for Haaland, who cushions a pass into the road of Alvarez. A first-time shot is whistled past the right-hand post. Petrovic had it covered. Chelsea get the ball rolling. Breaking news: it’s raining in Manchester! The teams are out! City in sky, Chelsea in second-choice navy: it’s a blue day. Suggs has a song for that; shame none of them are sporting titfers, because Nick Heyward’s azure-influenced work is much better. We’ll be off in a couple of minutes. Mauricio Pochettino is then asked by Sky whether his side will be “brave protagonists” as they were in the 4-4 draw between the teams at Stamford Bridge in November. “Yes, that is the idea … if not, for sure we will suffer … that is the key … when we have the ball, we will be brave … it is a good challenge and a good test for us to prepare for the [Carabao Cup] final … but the most important thing is the three points today.” Pep talks to Sky. “It’s important, it’s important [to stop Cole Palmer] … but it’s not just the goals, it’s the smart moving in the pockets … but it’s not just him … Gallagher … Sterling … Jackson with the long ball … I would say it’s Chelsea! … we will play a different way a little bit today, but Kevin [De Bruyne] will play in his position.” The new-look Premier League. The final whistle has just blown at Turf Moor, where free-scoring Arsenal have beaten abject Burnley 5-0. That follows Liverpool’s earlier 4-1 win at Brentford. Arsenal’s rout nudges the champions down into third spot. City will need a thumping five-goal win tonight if they’re to reclaim second on goals scored; win both of their games in hand, and they’ll go top. Chelsea meanwhile have been cashiered into the bottom half of the table, as a result of Wolverhampton’s 2-1 win at Spurs. Chelsea can catapult themselves up to eighth with a surprise win this evening. (It’s mathematically possible for them to reach as high as seventh, and you’ll get generous odds on the 12-0 win required for that.) Latest score: Pep Guardiola 1-1 Gary Neville. There’s already been one big clash between these two clubs this weekend. Jonathan Liew has the details. Manchester City make three changes to the starting side named for the 3-1 win in Copenhagen. Jack Grealish is injured so Jeremy Doku takes his place, as he did in the Champions League during the week. Also stepping up: Manuel Akanji and Julian Alvarez. John Stones and Bernardo Silva drop to the bench. Chelsea make two changes after Monday night’s 3-1 win at Crystal Palace. Raheem Sterling and Levi Colwill replace None Madueke, who drops to the bench, and the injured Thiago Silva. Sterling and Cole Palmer are both starting against their former club. The teams Manchester City: Ederson, Walker, Dias, Ake, Akanji, Rodri, Foden, De Bruyne, Alvarez, Doku, Haaland. Subs: Stones, Kovacic, Ortega, Bernardo Silva, Gomez, Matheus Luiz, Bobb, Susoho, Lewis. Chelsea: Petrovic, Gusto, Disasi, Colwill, Chilwell, Caicedo, Fernandez, Palmer, Gallagher, Sterling, Jackson. Subs: Mudryk, Madueke, Bettinelli, Chalobah, Nkunku, Casadei, Gilchrist, Samuels-Smith, Harrison. Referee: Andrew Madley (West Yorkshire). Preamble Manchester City are chasing a fourth consecutive title; Chelsea are looking to avoid their second consecutive mid-table finish. Plenty to play for then. Kick-off is at 5.30pm GMT. It’s on!