5 reasons why Manchester City will struggle against Chelsea | EPL 2021-22

#3 Romelu Lukaku's form and a depleted Manchester City defence

Manchester City v Leicester City - The FA Community Shield

Manchester City centre-backs Aymeric Laporte and John Stones are doubts for the game against Chelsea. Nathan Ake has been partnered with Ruben Dias in recent weeks. That wouldn't usually be much of a cause for concern but the fact that they will be going up against an in-form Romelu Lukaku will worry Guardiola.

The pressing system that Ralph Hassenhuttl used to disrupt Manchester City's rhythm last weekend is similar to the ones used by Liverpool and Chelsea. If Chelsea can win the ball back in midfield and move the ball to Lukaku, he can cause a lot of problems for City's defence.

Chelsea are excellent at transitions and Lukaku's hold-up play will come handy against Manchester City's defence. Mason Mount, Kai Havertz, Marcos Alonso and Mateo Kovacic are all runners and City will need to be extra cautious about conceding possession.

It's safe to say that Manchester City haven't yet faced as potent an attacking unit as Chelsea's since the start of the 2021-22 season. As a result, they could be really exposed here.

#2 Manchester City have struggled to break down organized defences

Manchester City v Southampton - Premier League

The Blues have transformed into one of the most solid defensive units in Europe under Thomas Tuchel. They've conceded a single goal this season and it came from the spot after they were reduced to 10-men against Liverpool.

Tuchel's men are yet to concede a goal from open play in the 2021-22 Premier League season. Manchester City struggled to break down Leicester City's defence two weeks ago. They were lucky to come away with all three points from the King Power Stadium.

They were forced to the end of their wits against Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur. Manchester City have struggled against organized defensive units this season and Chelsea could be their toughest test yet.

#1 Chelsea have won four of their last five games against Manchester City

Manchester City v Chelsea FC - UEFA Champions League Final

Chelsea's 3-4-2-1 formation allows them to play compactly. Pep Guardiola's Manchester City love to play through the middle. Southampton used a 4-2-2-2 shape to force the reigning Premier League champions to go wide and not get up to their usual tricks.

This also meant that whenever they got possession, the Saints had plenty of passing options.

Ralph Hassenhuttl explained the same in his post-match interview.

"We did it so well during the first half. 4-2-2-2 was the shape and we did that perfectly. It works against Pep fantastically because he wants to play football. It's tough against any team that tries to play through."

Chelsea are all too familiar with this routine. That is exactly how they scored the winning goal in the Champions League final last term. They transitioned from defence to attack swiftly. Edouard Mendy shifted the ball out to the left flank where Mount collected it and immediately played Havertz into space.

The 22-year-old was clear all of a sudden and found himself in a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper. There was a huge gap in the City defence and that typified City's inability to make defensive transitions at the same speed that Chelsea do it.

Manchester City have struggled against Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool and Thomas Tuchel's Chelsea. They have lost all of their last three games against Chelsea and have found them extremely difficult to break down. The story is unlikely to be much different at Stamford Bridge this Saturday.

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