City give Chelsea the blues as Pellegrini silences Mourinho Chelseas interest in this seasons FA Cup competition was ended on Saturday night following a comprehensive 2-0 defeat by Manchester City at the Etihad. A first half strike from Stevan Jovetic, complemented by a well-taken goal from substitute Samir Nasri in the second period, gave Man City boss Manuel Pellegrini cause to cheer following the Citizens recent home Premier League defeat at the hands of the Blues. Outspoken in the build-up to the cup tie with City, Stamford Bridge boss Jose Mourinho was dealt a harsh dose of reality as Chelsea were well beaten by Pellegrinis men, many of whom saw the game as an opportunity to prove a point to the Chilean whose team selection was clearly influenced by the Citizens forthcoming Champions League collision with Barcelona. With the notable, and maybe telling exception of John Terry, it was as you were for the Blues starting XI which had a familiar ring to it as far as Pellegrini, his players and Manchester City supporters were concerned following Chelseas recent Premier League triumph at the Etihad. Terrys enforced absence saw David Luiz drop back to partner Gary Cahill in central defence with John Obi Mikel coming into the side to stoke the fires of Chelseas midfield engine room. The Nigerian was alongside Nemanja Matic in what was the only change to the side Mourinho had fielded against the Citizens 12 days ago. Captain-for-the-night Petr Cech had a backline in front of him of Branislav Ivanovic, Cesar Azpilicueta, Cahill and Luiz, with Matic and Mikel providing a defensive midfield shield, and Ramires, Eden Hazard and Willian tasked with creating chances for themselves and for lone striker Samuel Etoo. It was a Chelsea line-up that had intent and purpose written all over it, and full credit must be given to Mourinho for not trivialising the heritage of the FA Cup by fielding a weakened team as has become an all too familiar feature of the competition in recent seasons. For his part, Pellegrini has the strongest, deepest, most expensive squad in English football. At any other club, making six changes to a team that had started and lost a recent match with Chelsea might have been asking for trouble, but any thoughts that reserve picks such as giant keeper Costel Pantilimon, defender Joleon Lescott, midfielder Javi Garcia and striker Jovetic would not be up to the job were soon banished as the game got under way and the home side got into their stride. Despite a cagey opening, City effectively bossed the game from start to finish, and in restricting Chelsea to just three goal-scoring chances, while taking two of their own, they were good value for a victory which was never really in doubt from the 16th minute when Jovetic, whod moments earlier clipped the Blues bar when he might have done better, put the Citizens in front, finishing clinically having been played in by Edin Dzeko. After the break, Mourinho, whod initially elected to utilise the same 4-2-3-1 formation that had served him well in the recent PL encounter with City, opted for a change of personnel in an attempt to reinvigorate his somewhat lacklustre charges. Recent signing Mohamed Salah replaced Etoo, and then with the score still 1-0 in the home sides favour, the Blues boss withdrew Ramires in favour of Fernando Torres. At the same time as Torres entered the fray, Pellegrini made his first substitution by sending on a fit again Nasri for Jovetic, and within a matter of minutes Nasri doubled Citys lead. Looking fresh and lively after a five week injury lay-off, the France international revelled in running at the Chelsea defence, and in the 67th minute, following a neat combination move with Silva, he swept the ball home. Shortly after, Mourinho sent on Oscar for Willian, but there was to be no way back for Chelsea, whose travelling support numbering in excess of 6,000 remained in good voice and good heart throughout the evening, despite seeing their side well beaten. Blues fans, searching for an explanation, debated the absence of talisman, captain, leader and legend Terry, but the reality is that as occasionally happens in football, it wasnt to be their night. Pellegrinis Manchester City remain in contention for an unprecedented quadruple, while Mourinho must set his players sights a little lower. Has Saturday nights result shifted the psychological balance of power away from Mourinho and Chelsea? Time will only tell. But many suspect there will be no more talk of little horses as the Blues manager swiftly comes to terms with the manner in which his side slipped meekly to defeat and sets out to address any perceived issues promptly.
Posted on: Sun, 16 Feb 2014 16:36:40 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015