Chelsea will be looking to bounce back from a disappointing draw against Nottingham Forest when they face Manchester City in the Premier League tonight.
After Raheem Sterling's early goal sent the Blues ahead, Forest defender Willy Boly levelled the game in the second half of Chelsea's last outing, with Graham Potter's side dropping valuable points in a 1-1 draw. It was the ninth time the Blues have dropped points so far this season, with Chelsea heading into the clash against City 10th in the Premier League table.
Victory could send the Blues up to seventh in the table, but it will be tough against title contenders Man City. Potter's side has failed to score against City in their last three meetings in all competitions, the last a 2-0 defeat to Pep Guardiola's side in the Carabao Cup.
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So, how could Chelsea perform in their clash with Manchester City? Let's take a look.
Chelsea vs Man City score predicted by simulation
To complete this simulation, we used FIFA 23 and updated the squads with the latest injuries and suspensions.
We predict that the Blues could line up in a 3-4-3 formation, with their line-up as follows: Kepa; Chalobah, Silva, Koulibaly; Azpilicueta, Kovacic, Zakaria, Cucurella; Ziyech, Havertz, Mount.
We predict that City could set up in a 4-3-3 formation, with their line-up as follows: Ederson; Cancelo, Stones, Akanji, Ake; De Bruyne, Rodri, Gundogan; Silva, Haaland, Foden.
Manchester City were in full control during the opening stages of the game at Stamford Bridge, and it was a far-from-ideal start for Potter's side as the Blues found themselves 2-0 down at halftime. The first goal came courtesy of Kevin De Bruyne, with the Belgian finding the bottom corner from just inside the box as he swept home Bernardo Silva's cutback.
The second goal saw the Blues cut open on the counterattack, with Ilkay Gundogan's long ball finding the powerful run of Erling. Haaland who entered the box and fired past Kepa from close range. Thiago Silva came close in between the two goals for Chelsea, but his effort on goal was tipped past the post from Ederson.
Chelsea found themselves seeing much more of the ball in the second half as City opted to sit back and absorbed the pressure, though the introduction of Raheem Sterling injected some much-needed attacking intent into the Blues' attacks. The game looked set to finish 2-0 to the visitors, but Mateo Kovacic pulled a goal back in added time to set up an interesting final few minutes.
The Croatian surged forward with possession after intercepting a pass on the halfway line, and unmarked, the midfielder played a one-two with Mason Mount to break into the box and fire into the bottom corner. Chelsea had another three minutes of added time to salvage a draw, but they couldn't muster up any more chances as they fell to defeat.
FIFA 23 predicted score: Chelsea 1-2 Man City
Here are the full-time match stats:
FIFA 23 predicts that Chelsea may find it difficult against City tonight, losing 2-1 in the simulation. Raheem Sterling's pace caused problems for City off the bench as the Blues won the second half, potentially showing how the Blues may need to attack if they want to find victory against tough opposition.
What do you think the final score will be? Let us know in the comments.
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