Chelsea vs Manchester City Predictions, Betting Tips and Match Previews

The dawn of a new Premier League season is almost upon us, and for many the Community Shield clash the weekend before the top flight kicks off marks a return to life as normal in the football world. Admittedly few teams take the trophy too seriously, but it’s always a bonus to kick the campaign off with some silverware.

For Maurizio Sarri, this is a chance for him to win a trophy in his very first competitive game in charge. He takes charge at Stamford Bridge after a three year stint at Napoli where his managerial style won plaudits from around Europe, but it’s hard to ignore the fact that Sarri has never won a major trophy. He took Napoli to two second place finishes and a third place, but he is yet to lift silverware.

The Blues pre-season form hasn’t exactly set the world alight either. They beat Perth Glory 1-0 in their opener a few weeks ago, and have since drawn with both Inter Milan and Arsenal in the International Champions Cup. Each game has been marked by a very early Chelsea goal, with Pedro notching against Perth Glory and Inter Milan and Antonio Rudiger getting the opener against Arsenal. All three of these goals came inside the first ten minutes, so we could see a fast paced start from the popular manager.

Pep Guardiola will know all of this though, and he has the advantage of knowing his Manchester City side completely going into this game. The Citizens romped to the Premier League title last season, breaking long standing records all over the place. Now they will look to extend their dominance even further, and the majority of football fans don’t doubt that they have the capability.

Admittedly, Manchester City could be slightly weakened coming into this game. A host of their first team players made it to the World Cup knockout stages, but with only Kyle Walker, Raheem Sterling, Vincent Kompany, and Kevin De Bruyne making it past the quarter final stage, we should see plenty of them back in action here. Riyad Mahrez is a slight doubt though after going off injured against Bayern Munich.

Looking at the odds, it’s difficult not to see a lot of value in a Manchester City win here. Pep Guardiola’s men have won 21 of their last 30 competitive games and now face a Chelsea side who haven’t looked anywhere near their best in pre-season, not to mention the fact that both Thibaut Courtois and Eden Hazard are unlikely to feature.

We’re backing a Manchester City win, and with eight of their last ten competitive games also seeing at least three goals we like the look of a Manchester City Win and Over 2.5 Goals alongside a 2-1 correct score predictions.

Chelsea Predicted Lineup: Caballero, Azpilicueta, Luiz, Rudiger, Alonso, Jorginho, Barkley, Drinkwater, Pedro, Hudson-Odoi, Morata

Manchester City Predicted Lineup: Ederson, Bolton, Otamendi, Laporte, Mendy, Gundogan, Foden, D. Silva, Sane, B. Silva, Aguero