Chelsea have the chance to be the scriptwriters once more. They are, as they so often have been, right in the mix to be there on the day that the title is decided once and for all.
For the sixth season in a row they won't be lifting the trophy. It's the biggest gap between title wins since Roman Abramovich took over the club and provides an accurate background of context for how far they have fallen since Antonio Conte's miraculous 2016/17 triumph.
That team was built on the back of league winners two seasons earlier, this squad is not even representative of any strand of the side that took itself to the summit of European football in 2021. The club is diametrically changed from the one that waltzed the final and bypassed Manchester City in Porto.
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That doesn't mean that Frank Lampard's players won't have an impact this year. Even if Pep Guardiola's side are just one win away from the league - a gap that they may not even have to address should Arsenal lose to Nottingham Forest first on Saturday - Chelsea find themselves involved.
It is the closest they have come to title drama in years having dropped off from the competition early. In 2020 their win over the same opposition saw Liverpool crowned champions but not even the most optimistic Arsenal supporter would hold up hope of a collapse big enough to see the same happening here.
Chelsea have nothing but pride to play for in the final three games of season and will be aiming to avoid another Etihad Stadium embarrassment. They will also have to do it without a set of key players that have been ruled out for close to the remainder of the campaign.
Here's how they prepared for the match on Sunday with images from the club website.
Flashy Fernandez
Chelsea have, in Enzo Fernandez, a player that City would love. With his ability to dictate tempo, play passes both short and long, win the ball back in midfield and clip lofted deliveries from across the pitch, he is an archetypal Guardiola player.
He will be up against a tough midfield, though, with Rodri acting as one of the most outstanding players this season. He will have to watch out for Fernandez's trickery on and off the ball, though with the Argentine set for a key role in the team.
He has played in every game since joining in January and isn't likely to let up here. He can be seen controlling a ball in his simple style. Taking care of that in Manchester will be important given how the Blues are likely to be starved of it for most of the afternoon.
Rival returns
Raheem Sterling, fresh off the back of scoring a brace against Nottingham Forest, will be back at his old stomping ground for the first league game since his move last summer. Although he has already witnessed Chelsea get a comprehensive beating away to City twice already this year in the cup, this is a game he will have pencilled in to be ready for.
His move to Stamford Bridge hasn't gone as planned so far and there are questions to be asked heading into the summer over his long-term role in the squad but if there was ever a time to show his quality it is against former employers.
He looks relaxed and ready for the fight, smiling away in training, perhaps getting ready for a dream return scenario. Having shone under Guardiola the pair are now rivals for 90 minutes and Sterling's impact on the game could be crucial to seeing who comes out on top.
Air Mudryk
Time for a new rival to Michael Jordan's global sportswear brand? Mykhailo Mudryk was seen doing his best to replicate impressive air time in training with his attempted bicycle kick caught on camera.
The Ukrainian is yet to score for his new team since joining in January but has shown flashes of brilliance on occasion. Although he didn't get the nod from the start against Forest he will be a massive threat from the bench in Manchester, if Lampard sticks with Sterling.
With Erling Haaland already showing how to score overhead kicks this season for City, bagging an acrobatic goal with a stunning effort against Southampton, Mudryk might be about to unleash a whole new element to his game if this skill is perfected.
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