Chelsea 0-1 Manchester City: 5 talking points as Gabriel Jesus sinks the Blues | Premier League 2021-22
A second-half strike by Gabriel Jesus was enough to give Manchester City a 1-0 victory over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday's lunchtime kickoff.
The hosts made four changes to the side that saw off Tottenham last weekend. Thomas Tuchel recalled Edouard Mendy, Timo Werner, Reece James and N'Golo Kante to the starting lineup.
Kevin de Bruyne and Phil Foden made their first Premier League starts for Manchester City this season. Nathan Ake and Fernandinho were among those who dropped to the bench.
The visitors started the game on the front foot and dominated possession in the early stages, with Chelsea content to sit back and try to hit on the break.
Manchester City deployed a high line and pressed Chelsea aggressively each time they lost the ball.
It was, however, the hosts who had the first notable chance of the game as Lukaku showed excellent hold-up play to release Timo Werner on the counter. The German, however, saw his goalbound shot deflected to safety by Kyle Walker's block.
Rodri and Gabriel Jesus went close for Manchester City but neither side could find a breakthrough to ensure we entered the break all square.
A fine display! 🤩
🔵 0-1 💙 #ManCity | mancity.com https://t.co/zZ2GKKX3lQ
Manchester City continued their dominance in the second half and got a deserved lead in the 53rd minute.
A short corner kick routine saw the visitors play around the edge of the Chelsea box before Joao Cancelo sent a shot at goal which fell to Gabriel Jesus. He expertly controlled the ball and wriggled his way around the pressure from defenders with his deflected shot leaving Mendy flat-footed in the Chelsea goal.
Lukaku had the ball in the back of the net soon after but the goal was rightly chalked off for offside. Meanwhile Jack Grealish had two great chances to double his side's lead.
Ultimately, Manchester City held on for victory to condemn Chelsea to their first loss of the season.
The win sees the defending champions climb to second spot in the table while Chelsea drop into third place.
Here are five talking points from the game.
#5 Pep Guardiola finally gets one over Thomas Tuchel as Chelsea manager and enters the record books in the process
This fixture has been a recurring one in recent months, with this the fifth time that both sides have traded tackles since the turn of the year.
Manchester City came into the game having lost each of their last three fixtures against Chelsea. The most painful was their loss in the final of the UEFA Champions League in May. The Blues also knocked them out of the FA Cup and had a league triumph at the Etihad.
In essence, Pep Guardiola had not registered a victory over Thomas Tuchel since he became the Chelsea manager. Much of the pre-game talk surrounded whether the Catalan could finally break the jinx.
Most of those losses were characterized by Guardiola deviating from his regular tactics in a bid to get one over the Chelsea manager. However, he returned to basics for this game and the result was his side dominating proceedings from start to finish.
🌟 RECORD BREAKER 🌟
🔷 #ManCity | mancity.com https://t.co/zlAFq9vsoi
The victory also saw the Catalan enter the record books, as it was his 221st win since becoming Manchester City manager five years ago.
The record took just 303 matches to achieve and saw him overtake the late Les McDowall, who spent 12 years as City between 1937 and 1949.
#4 Gabriel Jesus steps up for Manchester City
Gabriel Jesus' career at Manchester City has been a bit of a paradox. On the one hand, the Brazil international has contributed immensely to the successes enjoyed by the club in the last four years. This has seen him amass a trophy count that is the envy of many players around the world.
However, at no point has the 24-year-old been essential as the club's focal point. Many even saw him as one of the extra accessories in Manchester City's winning machine.
Sergio Aguero's departure in the summer offered Jesus an opportunity to play a starring role. However, most of the window was characterized by City's ultimately futile pursuit of Harry Kane.
Furthermore, Guardiola stated last week that City do not have a guy who can score '20-25 goals a season'. This was an indictment on the sole out-and-out striker in the squad.
Gabriel Jesus issued the perfect response by scoring the match-winner and the manner in which he took the goal underlines his natural striking instinct.
Whether that will be enough to give him an extended run of play in front of goal remains to be seen.