Chelsea 0-1 Manchester City: 5 hits and flops as Gabriel Jesus strike downs European champions | Premier League 2021-22
Manchester City inflicted Chelsea with their first defeat of the Premier League season after snatching a hard-fought 1-0 victory at Stamford Bridge.
Gabriel Jesus scored the only goal of the game as the Cityzens ended their wretched run of three consecutive defeats to the London outfit.
Following a cagey first-half which ended with neither side mustering even a single short on target, the match opened up following a spell of pressure from the visitors.
Joao Cancelo received the ball outside the box and attempted to shoot, but saw his effort deflected into the path of Jesus. He then swiftly controlled the ball to twist and turn before firing into the net, albeit with a deflection from Jorginho.
Guardiola’s Man City record vs. Tuchel’s Chelsea:
▪️ 1-0 loss in 2020-21 FA Cup semifinal
▪️ 2-1 loss in 2020-21 Premier League
▪️ 1-0 loss in 2020-21 UCL final
▪️ 1-0 win in 2021-22 Premier League
Pep finally gets the better of Tuchel 🔓 https://t.co/WV5yFV74PF
Chelsea, who'd beaten City in the Champions League final earlier this year, were below-par for much of the game. Had it not been for Edouard Mendy's heroics in goal, they would've lost by a bigger margin too.
Thomas Tuchel's side drop to third place in the standings but attention quickly turns towards Tuesday's mega European tie with Juventus, while City are off to Paris.
Here are the hits and flops from the match:
Hit: Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City)
Following Sergio Aguero's departure, there were calls for Manchester City to buy a new striker. Fans believed they should look for someone who could replace the Argentine, with Gabriel Jesus not trusted to lead the line enough.
But so far in the new season, he's silenced his critics with talismanic performances, scoring twice and making three assists in all competitions going into the match.
Now the Brazilian netted another strike to highlight his importance to the side and, more importantly, continue his resurgence as an elite forward.
Gabriel Jesus scores his 1st goal in
1️⃣1️⃣ career apps v Chelsea
@ManCity have never lost in the previous 4️⃣3️⃣ PL games that Gabriel Jesus has scored in (W41, D2) https://t.co/ykW8AXnZGZ
Sure, his effort took a small deflection off Jorginho. But Jesus deserves credit for controlling the ball superbly despite being under so much pressure. Add to that the audacity to even attempt a shot like that through a stream of blue shirts.
Step aside Sterling, Mahrez and Silva, there's a new match-winner in town.
Flop: Marcos Alonso (Chelsea)
Marcos Alonso has come in from the cold at Chelsea and is proving his worth to the side once again with his attacking prowess. But today's game showed how much the Spaniard lacks defensively.
His penchant for driving forward left acres of space in behind for the likes of Jesus and Silva to exploit, both of whom made a meal of it. Alonso was pretty off the pace in trying to track back too.
In a desperate attempt to regain possession, he caught Silva with a rough challenge and earned himself a yellow. It very much summed up his evening on the defensive front.
Going forward too, the left-back was ineffective. His crosses were wayward, completing none of his seven attempts, nor getting a long ball perfectly, whilst also losing possession 19 times.
A tough day at the office for the Chelsea left-back.