Rewind 30 years and neither Chelsea nor Manchester City were challenging for top honours on a regular basis in English football. Now, since the 2010s, they’re the 2 most decorated clubs in the country whose financial power has altered the modern landscape of the sport forever.
2 meetings inside 72 hours between these super-wealthy European powerhouses reminds us of a rivalry that runs deeper than merely what happens on the pitch.
Remember Robinho? On 1st September 2008, the final day of the transfer window, the Brazilian attacker had all but sealed a switch to Chelsea before he had a last-minute change of heart. Robinho moved from Real Madrid to City instead for £32.5m, a British transfer record at the time. In the weeks preceding the move, Chelsea chief executive Peter Kenyon was utterly convinced that the signing was in the bag.
When quizzed on the switch, Robinho said: “On the last day, Chelsea made a great proposal and I accepted.”
A reporter then replied, "You mean Manchester, right?”
“Yeah, Manchester, sorry!” said Robinho.
Ever since that day, football in England hasn’t really been the same, with its BIGGEST players propped up by billionaire owners.
Chelsea 2-4 Man City (2010, EPL)
JT vs Wayne at the Bridge
There was no love lost between the sides when City claimed a thrilling win at Stamford Bridge back in 2010. Chelsea skipper John Terry was rumoured to have had an affair with the partner of long-time friend Wayne Bridge. Needless to say, there was no handshake between the players at the start of the match and the friendship is no longer.
Frank Lampard scored both Chelsea’s goals, Carlos Tevez and Craig Bellamy both got braces for City, and Chelsea had 2 men sent off (Juliano Belletti and Michael Ballack). This was fiery.
Chelsea had the last laugh though, winning the title that season some 19 points ahead of City. Still, it was an ominous sign of things to come as City announced themselves as an emerging force in England and haven’t looked back.
Man City 1-3 Chelsea (2016, EPL)
Smash and grab
This was a classic away performance by the Blues, who hardly had a kick of the ball in the first half. The contest exploded in the second period with Chelsea scoring sucker-punch goals through Willian and Eden Hazard following a typically bully-ish Diego Costa strike from a sublime Cesc Fàbregas pass.
Kun Agüero and Fernandinho were both shown red cards in stoppage time for the hosts. You’ll probably recall the memes showing David Luiz smiling on the ground after being fouled by Agüero. These clubs don’t like each other very much.
Chelsea 1-0 Man City (2021, UCL final)
Pep’s overthinking goes too far
Okay, it probably wasn’t a thriller in the traditional sense, but it was a BIG upset, even if Chelsea’s impressive run to the final was factored into it. Pep Guardiola probably still has sleepless nights over his decision NOT to select a specialist defensive midfielder that night in Porto. Kai Havertz delivered the goods and started earning his reputation as a BIG game player by scoring the goal of an otherwise forgettable football match.
City have won the Premier League 6 times since 2011, and they’ve also scooped 6 League Cups and 2 FA Cups in that timeframe. They have undoubtedly been the dominant force on the English domestic scene. Chelsea have won 2 Champions League titles; in 2012 and 2021, and they also claimed Europa League success with Rafael Benítez in 2013 and Maurizio Sarri in 2019.
Since Sheikh Mansour landed in Manchester in August 2008, City and Chelsea have won 14 trophies apiece (discounting the Community Shield). Man United have 9, Liverpool have 7 and Arsenal have 4. The Todd Boehly era at Stamford Bridge is still brand new but it hasn’t exactly started with fireworks.
Chelsea spent £2.1bn in 19 years under the ownership of Roman Abramovich. City have spent just a fraction less than that in 13 years under Sheikh Mansour. It’s no wonder why they’ve enjoyed such stellar success.
Witnessing Frank Lampard getting on the scoresheet against Chelsea in a Manchester City shirt has to be one of the most surreal sights in modern football history. Chelsea’s all-time leading goalscorer bulged the net 211 times for the Blues in 648 appearances spanning a glittering 13-year career. His overall tally of 177 Premier League goals places him sixth on the all-time charts. Although Lampard played just 38 matches for Man City, he’s arguably the finest ever player to represent both clubs.
England’s Shaun Wright-Phillips, Wayne Bridge and Daniel Sturridge, France’s Nicolas Anelka, Liberia’s George Weah and Israel’s Tal Ben Haim also turned out for both the Blues and the Sky Blues in their careers.
Of the active players, Kevin De Bruyne, Raheem Sterling and Nathan Aké have worn the colours of both teams. Chelsea’s new man Sterling scored 91 goals in 225 City appearances, while De Bruyne was discarded by Chelsea manager José Mourinho back in 2014. Not one of his finest decisions in the transfer market. KDB has 4 goals and an assist in his last 5 EPL matches against Chelsea.
On the domestic scene, City have been almost flawless, winning 4 of the last 5 EPL titles. Chelsea’s last league success came back in 2016/17. Since then, they’ve finished 5th, 3rd, 4th, 4th and 3rd. It’s a solid level of consistency in many ways, but not the consistency at the pinnacle of English football that their demanding owners crave.
Pep Guardiola has lost 8 times against Chelsea throughout his career, including his time at Barcelona. He’s never lost to any side more. The 2 most painful defeats in that sample of 8 came in the Champions League semi-finals in 2012 with Barça and the final itself in 2021. Until he wins European club football’s BIGGEST prize with City, he’ll feel as though his business there is not finished.
Most observers would likely point to City as the more organised, well-run club. They’re certainly more patient with their managers. Whereas Chelsea’s “hire and fire” model has delivered great success and oodles of silverware, it has also created an unstable environment. City have gone the opposite route, choosing to back their “legacy” manager Pep Guardiola with funds for players and regular new contracts. Pep has been with City since 2016, making his stint at the Etihad his longest with a single club by far.
Since Guardiola was appointed by City in 2016, Chelsea have employed 5 different managers: Antonio Conte, Maurizio Sarri, Frank Lampard, Thomas Tuchel and current boss Graham Potter. 2 of those managers delivered European silverware to Stamford Bridge; Guardiola has yet to do that for City, with Chelsea directly responsible for Pep’s misery in that regard in the 2021 Champions League final.
Back to the present, and Chelsea’s form is patchy to say the least. As of New Year’s Day, they had won just 1 of their last 7 in the EPL, and City had won on their last 2 EPL visits to Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea start both of these matches against the English champions as clear underdogs. It’s an unfamiliar feeling for a club that have scooped so much silverware since 2005, and the immediate road ahead for Graham Potter and Chelsea looks pretty treacherous too. In addition to this double header with Man City, they also have 5 London derby clashes to negotiate in their 8 Premier League matches between now and the end of February.
Add to that a top-flight clash against Liverpool and the first leg of their Champions League round of 16 meeting with Borussia Dortmund, and it’s no exaggeration to say that this period will make or break Potter’s Chelsea reign.
With plenty on the line for both clubs, we can expect the heat to go up a notch in the early part of 2023.
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