Manchester City 2-1 Chelsea: 3 reasons why the Cityzens won | Premier League 2019-20

Pep Guardiola's men were at risk of falling further behind in the high-speed chase at the top of the table, however, they came from a goal down to beat Chelsea 2-1 at the Etihad Stadium.

Chelsea's ever-smiling midfield enforcer N'Golo Kante opened his team's account in the 21st minute, as he received a precise through ball from Mateo Kovacic to stab the ball beyond the reach of Manchester City's Ederson Moraes.

A few minutes later, Kevin De Bruyne was on hand to pull the hosts level, albeit a welcome deflection from Kurt Zouma.

The Cityzens went ahead in the 37th minute, as Riyad Mahrez jinxed his way into the Chelsea box before sending the ball into the bottom corner.

Man City moved into third place with this victory as Chelsea fell to fourth, 2 points behind the defending champions. In this article, we discuss a few reasons why Guardiola's men won.

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3. A prompt response

Kevin De Bruyne whips his shot past the Chelsea defence

This was a tricky fixture for the Cityzens, as it came on the heels of the embarrassing loss at Anfield last time out.

Chelsea came out fighting, as they matched the defending champions pound for pound. They chased every loose ball, won the 50-50 chances, and energetically took the fight to the Manchester City defensive area.

Their positive persistence paid off early enough, as N'Golo Kante put the visitors ahead in the 21st minute. As it stood, City were behind the table-toppers from Merseyside by 12 points, a double-figure deficit for the first time in the campaign.

Undoubtedly, the spectre of another humiliating loss loomed large at the Etihad, however, the response was instant. The irrepressible Kevin De Bruyne led the charge, as he produced yet another Man of the Match performance, exquisitely cutting onto his left foot on the edge of the Chelsea penalty area before whipping his shot past the Chelsea goalmouth for the equaliser.

With the stakes sky-high, an instant response was just what the doctor ordered.

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2. A moment of individual brilliance

Riyad Mahrez celebrates his goal

It was one of those rare games when the usually gung-ho Manchester City attack was kept somewhat quiet for long spells, as Pep Guardiola's men hardly mustered shots on target.

Man City had a total of 15 shots but could only trouble Kepa Arrizbalaga on 4 occasions. The likes of Raheem Sterling and Sergio Aguero were muzzled for much of the encounter, as Cesar Azpilicueta kept the dangerous City left flank under lock and key.

City looked to their right flank for answers, and Riyad Mahrez led the charge with a game-high return of 5 shots. His persistence paid off early on in the encounter, as he received a pass from Rodrigo, dribbled his way past a bewildered Chelsea backline, before whipping the ball past Kepa Arrizabalaga for the winner.

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1. A great defensive performance

Benjamin Mendy jostling for the ball with Willian

Man City's defence has come under scathing criticism this season, with Guardiola's defensive guardians proving to be the team's biggest weakness.

Unfortunate injuries, as well as bad performances from the likes of John Stones and Nicholas Otamendi, has resulted in the defending champions conceding a whole lot of goals, causing them to slip behind Liverpool very early in the campaign.

However, it was a commendable performance from the City rearguard this time out, as the team welcomed Benjamin Mendy and Ederson Moraes back into the starting XI.

After conceding the first goal, City retreated a little deeper with their defending and snuffed out wave after wave of Chelsea attack. Mendy, in particular, muzzled the Chelsea right flank, with the dangerous Willian kept at bay.

Chelsea could only have 2 shots on target throughout the encounter, a testament to the effective display from the characteristically generous City defence.