Brilliant Chelsea inflict rare defeat on City
PREMIER LEAGUE Goals from Kante, Luiz help Blues hand defending champs their first loss of season; Liverpool on top
LONDON: Manchester City — Premier League champions-elect in the eyes of many — now know they are in a real fight after Liverpool leapfrogged them to the top of the table on a telling day in the title race.
Both sides started Saturday unbeaten after 15 matches with an impressive 25 wins between them — but it was Pep Guardiola’s champions who blinked first. Mohamed Salah scored a hat-trick for Juergen Klopp’s side as they romped to a 4-0 win at Bournemouth in the early kick-off, taking them to 42 points, one clear of City.
City had the tougher task of taking on Chelsea at Stamford Bridge later in the day and despite dominating the first half they ended up losing 2-0 — their first league defeat since April.
City remain firm favourites to win their second consecutive title but their aura of invincibility has been shaken and a hungry Liverpool are not in the mood to back off.
Guardiola took pride in his team’s performance despite the defeat, saying he never felt they were going to match the Arsenal Invincibles, who went through an entire Premier League season unbeaten in 2003-04.
“We are going to try to be champions,” he said. “In a season like this, with a lot of games — plus after last season — everybody wants to beat us. They put in something extra.”
RACISM CLAIM
Chelsea have said they will review video footage following allegations that a supporter directed racist abuse towards Manchester City’s Raheem Sterling during their match on Saturday.
A video posted online showed Sterling being shouted at by a fan as he went to collect the ball from behind the goal.
Chelsea later said in a statement: “We are aware of a video circulating online in which it is claimed racial abuse was allegedly directed at a player at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
“We will review the footage to determine whether any offences have been committed.”
they did miss the marksmanship of Sergio Aguero in front of the goal and Kevin De Bruyne’s creativity.
for the first 44 minutes but when chances came their way, they either hesitated or were unable to deliver the final product. Raheem Sterling and Leroy Sane had opportunities but they couldn’t convert them.
vindicated Maurizio Sarri’s decision to play him in a more advanced role instead of his previous position of a holding midfielder.
his decision to use Jorginho as the hub of his team but Sarri has stuck to his guns. Kante’s performance in the game added a significant weight to the Italian manager’s argument.
on Saturday and it brought Chelsea their first goal as he scored off an Eden Hazard pass. confidence entering Saturday’s encounter having lost two of their last three matches — a humiliating defeat at the hands of Tottenham and then the heartbreak against Wolverhampton.
they played as a cohesive unit, pressed them in the midfield and took the chances that came their way to record an impressive win. Kante 45 Luiz 78 Liverpool 16 13 3 0 28 42 Man City 16 13 2 1 36 41 Tottenham 16 12 0 4 14 36 Chelsea 16 10 4 2 20 34 Arsenal 16 10 4 2 15 34