Soon to join the ranks as Vital Manchester City co-editor, City fan, Once a Blue sent us the following.
With the young guns brushed aside in the League Cup, we must now turn our attention to this Saturday when high-flying Chelsea visit Eastlands for a 5.30 pm kick off. With most pundits comparing our project with that of Chelsea’s, this is set up for an enthralling game of football.
The visitors have hit the ground running this season, with other rivals struggling early on, Chelsea have used that to their advantage. Top of the Premier League and under new boss Carlo Ancelotti, Chelsea have been formidable opponents. Ancelotti’s side have been truly remarkable this season, seeing off most opponents with ease. Victors over United and most recently Arsenal, Ancelotti looks like he could be the man bringing the trophy back to Stamford Bridge.
Cue the players, Drogba, Lampard, our old foe Anelka and co have been unstoppable of late. The former is in the form of his life, inspirational to watch and a true catalyst in the Chelsea side. Add the supply line of Lampard, Essien, Cole and Ballack, this is a Chelsea side that puts the fear in the opposition’s eyes.
On the other hand, we have a completely different story, after a brilliant start and really looking like we could mount a challenge to Chelski, seven draws in a row has put a halt on proceedings. However, this could be the turnaround, arguably the biggest fixture of the season, a chance to put things back on track, we all know Saturday could make or break our season. Hughes and co must draw inspiration from recent encounters with the top four, two wins against Arsenal, a draw at Anfield and the unfortunate scenes at Old Trafford are hardly down heartening. The defence need to shine as a unit, the midfield breaking up play and creating chances, the forwards need to really test Cech and the Chelsea defences resilience early on. If we successfully complete all these daunting tasks then we stand a chance, a slim chance, but still a chance.
Both sides head into this fixture with the strongest line-ups available. Several key battles will unfold on Saturday, Lescott v Drogba, Barry v Lampard, Ireland v Essien and Adebayor v Terry can be seen as pivotal clashes.
I wouldn’t like to make a prediction as most have been off the mark of late. This Saturday let the battle commence, hopefully we can really prove a top four team.
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