In a match that perhaps didn’t meet the public expectations but showed the power of Man City and the Cityzens’ capability to easily triumph even when they are not on top of their game, Guardiola’s boys brushed Chelsea aside 2-0. Erling Haaland in the 18th and Mateo Kovacic in the 84th minute brought the victory to the away team, proving that Enzo Maresca would have to learn much more to outsmart his “teacher” on Man City’s bench.Even though all eyes were on Man City as a favourite in today’s match (especially after the 4-2 pre-season triumph over the Blues), Chelsea have proven to be one of the toughest opponents for Pep Guardiola’s squad numerous times. Last season, the two rivals drew both times (4-4 in London, 1-1 in Manchester), and the Cityzens undoubtedly still remember the 2021 Champions League final, Estadio do Dragao in Porto, Kai Havertz’s goal, and arguably the most painful defeat in the club’s history.City’s silent warrior and the potential Ballon d’Or winner bound to get what he deservesBoth Guardiola and his former “student” Enzo Maresca sprung a few surprises in their starting lineups. Despite all the well-known problems with his teammates, Enzo Fernandez was included in the first 11, taking the position behind the forward Nicolas Jackson, while Romeo Lavia was paired with Moises Caicedo as a defensive midfielder. On the other hand, the Spaniard gave an opportunity to the youngster Rico Lewis and the newcomer Savinho, while Jack Grealish, Phil Foden, and the captain Kyle Walker started the game on the bench.From the beginning of the match, Jeremy Doku and Marc Cucurella battled out on the side, while Chelsea mainly relied on quick counterattacks. However, the Cityzens converted their first massive chance and took the lead after 18 minutes! Doku switched sides with Savinho and attacked from the left flank, sending a ball inside towards Bernardo Silva. The Portuguese found Erling Haaland in the box, who bulldozed past Cucurella and Wesley Fofana, finishing exquisitely past Robert Sanchez.This opening goal seemed to have woken up Chelsea, which started attacking more often, mainly through Cole Palmer, Christopher Nkunku, and Malo Gusto, who was quite offensive on the right side. The Cityzens – deliberately or not – dropped the pace, waiting for Chelsea’s mistakes. On the other hand, the Blues had no concrete and productive way of coping with City’s defence, corner kicks being their best chances to score.106 – Erling Haaland has been directly involved in 106 goals in 100 appearances for Manchester City, with today’s opener being his 91st goal for the club (along with 15 assists). Guarantee. pic.twitter.com/buGvSY9kwk— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) August 18, 2024 Eight minutes before the break, Doku, arguably the most active player in both teams, unleashed a perfect effort from outside the box, but Sanchez made a terrific save. Three minutes later, after Silva’s strike from the left side, Chelsea’s keeper had to deflect the ball once more. And when everyone expected the break, Chelsea managed to make things interesting. Jackson found the net in the ultimate minute of the first period, but VAR could only confirm the initial on-court decision – offside.At first glance, the Blues seemed to be the equal rivals to the champions. However, looking more thoroughly, Guardiola’s crew completely controlled the game, the pace and the rhythm on the pitch from the first moment. Interestingly, Maresca’s boys demanded a penalty from the ref, Anthony Taylor, on three different occasions during the first 45 minutes.Guardiola left the debutant, Savinho, in the locker room at the break, replacing him with Phil Foden. Seven minutes into the second half, the same combination from the 18th minute could prove effective one more time. Again Silva found Haaland in the penalty area, but this time, Sanchez made a good save.🚨🚨| Todd Boehly left the game before full time. pic.twitter.com/c0IS3mynMJ— CentreGoals. (@centregoals) August 18, 2024 Maresca gave a bit more than half an hour to his team’s debutant, Pedro Neto, subbing him in for Christopher Nkunku. The Portuguese immediately found himself in a colossal chance and would certainly put the ball behind Ederson had it not been for Lewis, who nicked it away. Only minutes later, Jackson’s strike from close range ended up on City’s custodian’s gloves, but Chelsea was more dangerous than ever during this match.The 65th minute brought us another disallowed goal. This time, Haaland fouled Levi Colwill before Lewis’ goal, depriving his team of a more convincing lead. Right after that situation, Chelsea’s boss sent a pair of newcomers, Marc Guiu and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, in for Jackson and Lavia with the clear idea of improving the offence.In the 77th minute, the Blues again wanted a spot-kick after Mateo Kovacic handballed in the box – neither VAR nor Taylor reacted. And while the hosts desperately tried to level the score, Guardiola’s boys threw the final punch! The former Chelsea player, Kovacic, snatched the ball in the midfield, danced past Caicedo, and sent a nice effort from around 25 meters in Sanchez’s net, making it 2-0! This moment completely disheartened the Blues, who didn’t have the strength to fight back.In the second Premier League round, Man City await Ipswich, while Chelsea face Wolverhampton at Molineux Stadium. The Blues will also start their competition in Europe on Thursday, hosting the Swiss side Servette in the UEFA Conference League ultimate qualifying round.ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE – MATCHDAY 1FridayMan.Utd. – Fulham 1-0 (0-0)/Zirkzee 87/SaturdayIpswich – Liverpool 0-2 (0-0)/Jota 60, Salah 65/Arsenal – Wolverhampton 2-0 (1-0)/Havertz 25 Saka 74 /Everton – Brighton 0-3 (0-1)/Mitoma 25, Welbeck 56, Adingra 86/Newcastle – Southampton 1-0 (1-0)/Joelington 45/Nott.Forest – Bournemouth 1-1 (1-0)/Wood 23 – Semenyo 86/West Ham – Aston Villa 1-2 (1-1)/Paqueta 37(p) – Onana 3, Duran 79/SundayBrentford – Crystal Palace 2-1 (1-0)/Mbeumo 29, Wissa 76 – Pinnock 57 og/Chelsea – Man. City 0-2 (0-1)/Haaland 18, Kovacic 84/Monday22:00: (5.20) Leicester (4.00) Tottenham (1.65)***odds are subject to change***
