Manchester City vs Chelsea — 5 Key Battles to watch out for | UEFA Champions League 2020-21
Chelsea and Manchester City are just over 24 hours away from kicking off the all-important UEFA Champions League final at the Estadio do Dragao, Portugal. The two Premier League giants have been two of the most in-form teams in Europe heading into the game.
Chelsea have turned their campaign around since Thomas Tuchel's arrival at the club. Taking over from club legend Frank Lampard, the German transformed his side into one of the most difficult sides to play against. He led them past some of the biggest teams in Europe, including three wins out of four fixtures against Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid.
After a relatively slow start to the season, Pep Guardiola's Manchester City found their groove towards the end of 2020 and blew their rivals out of the water. They stormed to the top of the Premier League table and into the UCL final, beating the likes of Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund on the way.
It's been an incredible campaign so far, with both these sides being involved in some of the most impressive fixtures of this year's UCL. Ahead of one final showdown in Portugal for European glory, here is a look at five key battles to watch out for.
Manchester City v Chelsea — 5 Key Battles
Ilkay Gundogan v N'Golo Kante
N'Golo Kante has been one of Chelsea's heroes in their journey to their first UCL final since they last won it in 2012. He has been a menace in the middle, able to effortlessly carry the ball forward while effectively disrupting opposition attacks. Kante was Chelsea's Man of the Match across both legs against Real Madrid, and in the home leg against Atletico Madrid.
Against City, Kante could come face to face with one of the best goalscoring midfielders in Europe this season, Ilkay Gundogan.
The German has been a massive threat for Guardiola's side, and has made a difference time and again for the Catalan's side. Gundogan quietly influences proceedings in the middle, controlling the tempo of games when he isn't venturing forward.
It will surely be interesting to see if Gundogan manages to evade Kante's energy and get the better of him, or becomes the brilliant Frenchman's latest victim.
Phil Foden v Reece James
Now, this is one of the more interesting duels, to say the least. After nearly an entire campaign at right-back/wing-back, Tuchel recently moved James to centre-back. While this initially appeared to be a temporary measure for the FA Cup final, James played in central defence in the Blues' last two league games as well. Should he do so in the UCL final, he could be up against his compatriot, Phil Foden.
The 21-year-old has had a majestic second half of the season and has had a massive impact on City's season. Foden scored the winners in both legs of their knockout tie against Dortmund and played a huge role against PSG as well.
Foden is likely to reprise his role on the left-hand side and could be pitted against James on the right side of Chelsea's defence. If Tuchel opts to reverse Cesar Azpilicueta and James' positions, Foden could face the Chelsea captain instead of his England teammate.
Also read: 10 Best defenders in the Premier League this season (2020-21)