In a season where Chelsea still have a chance to do a double, Manchester City’s only hope for a silverware lies in the FA Cup despite Roberto Mancini’s men cutting down Manchester United’s lead at the top of the table.
Nevertheless, the game between two of the richest teams in the world is bound to be an exhilarating one so here are 10 things that readers should know about these two sides.
1) FA Cup Goals Scored: Chelsea 16 – 13: Chelsea win
2) Last six games between the two sides: Chelsea wins: 2, City wins: 3, draws: 1: Manchester City win
3) Total FA Cup titles: Chelsea 7 (current reigning champions), Manchester City: 5: Chelsea win
4) Goals conceded in FA Cup this season: Chelsea 5, Manchester City 0: Manchester City win
5) Top goal scorer (FA Cup) : Chelsea: Demba Ba (3 goals), Manchester City: Carlos Tevez (5 goals): Manchester City win
6) Barclays Premier League position: Chelsea 4th , Manchester City 2nd : Manchester City win
7) Total wins in all competitions: Chelsea 52, Manchester City 41: Chelsea win
8) Last 5 games in all competitions: Chelsea: 3 wins, Manchester City: 4 Wins: Manchester City Win
9) Highest winning score: Chelsea 6-0, Manchester City 6-2: Chelsea win
10) Win record at new Wembley: Chelsea: six wins out of 9 games, Manchester City: four wins: Chelsea win
Result: Chelsea 5-5 Manchester City
If the aforementioned stats are anything to go by, Chelsea and City both stand very even, which could account for a very exciting match. However, with Chelsea not really being able to assert their authority over Manchester City in recent times, things are not going to be easy for the Londoners.
Manchester City have been miserly in defence in this season’s FA Cup campaign. In all the games they have played, they have not conceded a single goal, which just goes on to show that regardless of how they have fared in the Premier League, Roberto Mancini’s men have been excellent in the FA Cup.
Chelsea on the other hand, have conceded five goals and although it’s common to concede such an amount of goals on road to the last four of any competition, interim manager Rafael Benitez would be expecting his defence to be resolute against a side that does not need a second invitation to exploit the opponent’s defensive frailties.
Both sides have great offensive talent in the locker-room which means that the game will not be a dull encounter by any means. In the shape of Juan Mata, the Blues have a terrific playmaker, one who has an uncanny ability to make something out of virtually nothing.
City on their part, have Yaya Toure to call upon. With David Silva’s inclusion still in doubt, a lot of responsibility lies on the shoulders of the Ivorian powerhouse who revels in big games.
With Fernando Torres also starting to find the back of the net regularly, it will be interesting to see how the City defence copes up with the Spaniard’s pace while also hoping to see Carlos Tevez add more goals to the five goals he has scored in the competition already.
Prediction
It is Chelsea who have a slight advantage over their opponents for Sunday’s encounter. The Blues have quite a love affair with the New Wembley which could play a crucial role in how things shape up. However, the game is not going to be an easy one for the reigning European Champions.
