Man City v Chelsea: We will try to win, says Mourinho Sun 2 Feb 2014 Get the latest team news and managers views ahead of Monday nights top-of-the-table match Follow Monday nights crunch match in our new Carlsberg Live Match Centre, which will provide you with more comment and information in the build-up and provide commentary, in-running stats and photos as the match unfolds. Go to live.premierleague. Manchester City host Chelsea on Monday in a clash between the Barclays Premier Leagues most potent attack and its meanest defence. A trip to the Etihad Stadium has become one of the most daunting prospects in English football, with City having won 17 of their 18 matches there in all competitions this season, scoring 72 goals in the process. Manuel Pellegrinis men have won all 11 of their Barclays Premier League fixtures on home soil this term, finding the net 42 times, and their scoring exploits continued on the road in midweek as they beat Tottenham Hotspur 5-1 at White Hart Lane. That result took Citys total Barclays Premier League goal tally to 68 in 23 matches, and a run of eight consecutive top-flight victories has lifted them a point above Arsenal at the top of the table. Chelsea sit only three points adrift in third on the back of just one defeat in their last 13 Barclays Premier League outings and much of their success this term has been built on their resilient defence. Jose Mourinhos side have conceded just three times in eight top-flight fixtures since their last defeat by Stoke City on 7 December and have let in only 20 goals in 23 matches this season while keeping nine clean sheets. Mondays match represents the first of two visits to the Etihad in the space of 12 days for Chelsea, as they will also travel to Manchester for an FA Cup fifth-round tie on February 15. Mourinho has insisted he has no intention of simply attempting to avoid defeat in either match. Chelsea try to win every game, the Chelsea manager said. We are not going to change our philosophy. We are going in a certain direction, and just because we are playing a certain opponent doesnt mean we are going to change that. Chelsea can take heart from their 2-1 victory over City in the reverse fixture in October courtesy of Fernando Torres last-gasp winner. Torres will miss this encounter with a knee problem, as will Citys goalscorer on that occasion, Sergio Aguero, who is sidelined after picking up a hamstring problem in the win at Spurs. Samir Nasri (knee) and Javi Garcia (knock) are both also unavailable to Pellegrini. With the exception of Torres and long-term absentee Marco van Ginkel (knee), Mourinho has a fully fit squad, and new signing Mohamed Salah could be in line for his debut, albeit probably from the bench. Manchester City (from): Hart, Pantilimon, Wright, Boyata, Clichy, Demichelis, Kolarov, Kompany, Lescott, Nastasic, Richards, Zabaleta, Fernandinho, Milner, Navas, Rodwell, Silva, Toure, Dzeko, Jovetic, Negredo, Nimely. Chelsea (from): Blackman, Cech, Hilario, Schwarzer, Ake, Azpilicueta, Cahill, Cole, Ivanovic, Kalas, Luiz, Terry, Hazard, Lampard, Matic, Mikel, Oscar, Ramires, Salah, Willian, Ba, Eto’o, Schurrle. Match Appointments Referee: Mike Dean. Assistants: J Collin, J Brooks. Fourth Official: C Foy.
Posted on: Mon, 03 Feb 2014 09:20:06 +0000
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