English Premier League---Manchester City VS Chelsea Prediction

Manchester City VS Chelsea    Livescore / H2H stats and Live Streaming
Time:05-01-2026 01:30 Monday
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Match Preview:
There is never a dull moment at Chelsea, and New Year’s Day brought even more drama as Maresca left his role as Blues head coach after 18 months in charge.
The Italian manager, recently linked to the Man City job, departs Stamford Bridge with two titles — the UEFA Conference League and FIFA Club World Cup — but those trophies did not earn him favour with Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital.
Were he still in the job, Maresca probably would have had to face questions about the possibility of replacing Guardiola in a few months; however, the higher-ups have instead given the former midfielder the chop after a dismal run of two league wins in seven.
The West London club’s run across all competitions reads two wins in the previous nine matches, further highlighting the world champions’ below-par results preceding the new year.

Although Chelsea are fifth in the table, three points off Liverpool in fourth, the Blues are just above Manchester United on goal difference, one point clear of Sunderland, two above Everton and three ahead of Brentford, Crystal Palace and Fulham.

The Etihad is not where anyone would want to head if they are winless in three league away games, but interim boss Calum McFarlane will hope for a miracle against the title contenders.
Man City’s six-match winning run in the competition was halted by Sunderland on Thursday when both teams played out a goalless encounter at the Stadium of Light.
Far from the usual dull goalless game, the matchday 19 fixture was undeniably entertaining for the neutral, with the Black Cats giving all they had to extend their unbeaten start to the season on Wearside, thus ending the Sky Blues’ eight-match winning run against them.
The upshot of Thursday’s draw was celebration in North London, as Arsenal have now opened a four-point lead in the title race, having defeated Aston Villa 4-1 to conclude 2025.

Match Prediction: Manchester City 3-1 Chelsea
With Maresca, Chelsea were always up against it at the Etihad on Sunday, and the Blues face a significantly more brutal battle without the Italian manager. Guardiola’s team are expected to secure a comfortable victory over their London opponents, thereby extending their unbeaten run in this fixture to 12 matches.