City reduce gap at top of Premier League with emphatic win at Chelsea

City reduce gap at top of Premier League with emphatic win at Chelsea

City moved to within six points of the Premier League summit with a superb 3-0 victory away at Chelsea.

After a goalless first half, Pep Guardiola’s side were ruthless after the break with three goals in the space of 17 minutes.

Nico O’Reilly got the crucial opener with a header from Rayan Cherki’s cross before the French midfielder worked an opening for Marc Guéhi to fire home a second.

And Jeremy Doku ensured there was no way back for Chelsea as City’s determind press forced a turnover that the Belgian ruthlessly finished.

With leaders Arsenal losing earlier in the weekend, City took full advantage to move six points behind with a game in hand and the Gunners coming to the Etihad next Sunday.

The game in 250 words

With Chelsea in the race for one of the five spots for next season’s Champions League, the home side had plenty riding on the game themselves and provided some early menace.

They had the ball in the back of the net in the 16th minute through Marc Cucurella’s neat finish, but he was correctly ruled offside, albeit a close decision.

And Gianluigi Donnarumma, the only change from the side that thumped Liverpool in the FA Cup last time out, was also into the action early on, making a smart low save from Pedro Neto’s cross-shot.

City enjoyed a lot of the ball and created the best opportunity of the half just after the half hour but were denied by an instinctive save from Robert Sanchez.

Doku was proving a big threat down the left flank and he combined with O’Reilly who crossed for Bernardo Silva who tried to squeeze the ball home at the nearpost.

Sanchez then saved comfortably from Cherki’s 20-yard strike while Antoine Semenyo had a low shot deflected just wide as City upped the tempo.

And we were finally ahead five minutes after the break when O’Reilly shrugged off Chelsea defending to head home Cherki’s cross.

Attacking the direction of our vociferous away end, City sensed blood and got a second six minutes later.

Cherki skipped past Chelsea challenges on the edge of the box before picking out Guéhi who turned and shot low into the bottom corner with the precision associated with a striker rather than a centre-back.

City kept hunting and converged on Felipe Caicedo in his own half, with Doku winning the ball off him before clipping in a third.

With goal difference potentially important, Donnarumma maintained his clean sheet with a smart save from Cucurella from close range as City picked up a huge three points.

TEAMS

**Chelsea:**Sanchez, Gusto (Acheampong 88), Fofana, Hato, Cucurella, Caicedo (Essugo 82), Andrey Santos (Lavia 67), Estevao (Garnacho 67), Palmer, Neto, Joao Pedro (Delap 81).

Subs not used: Sharman-Lowe, Adarabaiyo, Sarr, Guiu.

City: Donnarumma, Nunes, Khusanov, Guéhi, O’Reilly (Ait-Nouri 64), Rodri, Bernardo (C) (Kovacic 81), Semenyo, Cherki (Foden 76), Doku (Savinho 76), Haaland.

Subs not used: Trafford, Reijnders, Ake, Marmoush, Nico.

Player of the match

These are the sorts of games why Guéhi moved to the Etihad and he showed that he’s more than at home on the big occasion.

Defensively he was superb, with key interventions, cutting out dangerous passes and making crucial blocks with the game on a knife edge.

He topped it off with a brilliant finish - a composed hit into the bottom corner that Erling Haaland would have been proud of!

Capital gains

O’Reilly loves Manchester but he must be getting pretty fond of London after a remarkable few weeks visiting the capital.

The Academy player was of course our two-goal hero when we lifted the Carabao Cup and then moved closer to going to the World Cup with an impressive performance for England.

And he was the right man in the right place again to break the stalemate at Stamford Bridge with the crucial opener.

The left-back took up a position inside the Chelsea box alongside Erling Haaland and held of Andrey Santos’ challenge to head home superbly.

It was the magic moment of another marvellous performance only marred by an injury scare that saw him taken off just after the hour-mark.

Pep reaction

Will follow shortly…

Player reaction

Will follow shortly…

What it means

City are now six points behind Arsenal at the top of the Premier League with a game in hand and a big match between the two sides seven days away.

What’s next

It’s just the small matter of Premier League leaders Arsenal next up for the Blues.

The Gunners come to the Etihad Stadium on Sunday 19 April for a 16:30 (UK) kick-off.