Chelsea 0 Man City 2 LIVE RESULT: Haaland and Kovacic goals seal opening day win for Champions against struggling Blues
CHELSEA lost 2-0 in their Premier League opener against Manchester City.
The Blues started the game reasonably well but were punished after an incisive pass found its way to Erling Haaland, who wriggled his way through the box before finishing.
And ex-Chelsea midfielder Mateo Kovacic made it 2-0 with a long-range strike late on.
- Kick-off time: 4.30pm BST
- Live stream: Sky Sports/ NOW TV
- TV channel: Sky Sports Main Event / Premier League
- Chelsea team: Sanchez, Gusto, Fofana, Colwill, Cucurella, Lavia, Caicedo, Enzo, Palmer, Jackson, Nkunku
- Man City team: Ederson, Lewis, Akanji, Dias, Gvardiol, Kovacic, De Bruyne (C), Bernardo, Doku, Savinho, Haaland
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A ton up
Erling Haaland hits 100 for Manchester City.
No, not goals - it's a century of appearances in a City shirt for the big Norwegian.
Frighteningly, he's not actually far away in goals.
- Apps: 99
- Goals: 90
- Assists: 15
Setting the scene
A cracking Sunday afternoon for football and this was the view a short time ago before the warm-ups got underway.
The atmosphere outside the ground pretty electric as the supporters queued to get into this one.
That start of season optimism!
Last season
I know, we want to look forward and not keep referencing last season.
But it's a good indicator to look back and see how these sides matched up.
The two league games finished all-square, including that famous 4-4 draw here in November.
Palmer himself slotting home a 95th minute penalty to equalise late on in that one, before an 83rd minute Rodri goal secured City a 1-1 draw at the Etihad in the reverse fixture.
City also won their FA Cup semi final late on with a solitary Bernardo Silva goal, before a 4-2 win for City over Chelsea in pre-season, too.
Top two
As far as goal scoring - and points scoring if you had them both in your Dream Teams - Cole Palmer and Erling Haaland were the top two for last season.
Palmer's first full season at Chelsea brought a stunning goal return and his 22 in the league was only bettered by former team-mate Erling Haaland.
Haaland hitting 27 - a drop on the previous season - which took a dent with injuries last season.
He'll be keen to get up and running pretty quickly this year.
Step up
Enzo Maresca has called on his Chelsea attacking players to share the responsibility in creating and scoring goals – after Cole Palmer’s one-man showing last season.
He said: “I don’t think it’s the contract but when you score 20 goals one season it’s always difficult to replicate, whether you are Cole Palmer or even Erling Haaland.
“It’s difficult and with Palmer we have to make sure we share the responsibility for goals with other wingers and attacking midfielders.
“It is not everything on Cole’s shoulders. We play with two wingers, two attacking players and a No 9.
“So these five players are the ones in charge of scoring goals and assisting their team-mates.
The wingers, attacking players and No 9 are in charge of scoring goals.”
How we stand
It's always worth a look at the current Premier League table.
Granted, these sides have nothing to show for it yet.
But a win of over three goals for either of these sides will put them top.... And set down a marker!
Arrivals
Both sets of players are in and settled well ahead of kick-off, with the warm up set to get going in a quarter of an hour or so.
The classic 'focused faces' on show as the players got off the team bus and scurried into Stamford Bridge.
Substitutes
And the two sets of subs the managers can call upon - which includes Pedro Neto for Chelsea.
CHELSEA: Jorgensen, Badiashile, Tosin, Veiga, Dewsbury-Hall, Madueke, Mudryk, Neto, Guiu
MAN CITY: Ortega Moreno, Walker, Stones, Ake, Grealish, Nunes, Foden, O'Reilly, McAtee
Man City team news
Rodri isn't in the matchday squad for Manchester City this afternoon - what a boost for Chelsea that is.
Savinho is straight into the starting XI for Pep Guardiola's men.
He'll play off one wing with Jeremy Doku on the other.
MAN CITY XI: Ederson, Lewis, Akanji, Dias, Gvardiol, Kovacic, De Bruyne (C), Bernardo, Doku, Savinho, Haaland
Chelsea team news
So Enzo Maresca has picked an XI from his rather large player resources for this one.
And Nicolas Jackson partners Christopher Nkunku in an attacking line-up that also includes Cole Palmer.
But no Pedro Neto, who has to make do with a spot on the bench.
CHELSEA XI: Sanchez, Gusto, Fofana, Colwill, Cucurella, Lavia, Caicedo, Enzo, Palmer, Jackson, Nkunku.
Team news on the way
A nice wee update this year of having the team news 75 minutes before kick-off, instead of 60 minutes.
So by my calculations, we'll get them in a few minutes.
Enzo Maresca has a few players to choose from in his Chelsea squad so this first XI will be telling.
Unrested
Pep Guardiola is demanding his side be at their best this afternoon, despite admitting he’d have loved to give some of his international heroes more rest over the summer.
He said: “We prioritise the rest, absolutely. I would love to give even more time, but it is what it is.
“I demand the best from Sunday against Chelsea. We know we have to take points as soon as possible and when the players are fitter and better physical condition, they have to be ready.
“I don’t know what will happen. Everyone knows we are not in the best conditions but it doesn’t matter, the desire and trying to do well and here control absolutely everything of luck.
“The vibes of the team is strong and all together doing what you have to do.”
SunSport's prediction
It's going to be a baptism of fire for Enzo Maresca as he takes charge of his first ever Premier League match as a manager.
And although he's got a home advantage and a squad full of mega-money superstars, it feels like it could be too early to topple a giant like this Man City side.
Pep Guardiola's team are a well-oiled machine and that will kick back into the routine of winning as soon as the first ball is kicked.
SunSport prediction: Chelsea 1-3 Man City
Early team news
Cole Palmer is expected to slot straight into the attack despite having minimal pre-season minutes courtesy of his Euro 2024 adventure with England.
And Chelsea's talisman could be joined by in-form Christopher Nkunku and summer signing Pedro Neto.
However, captain Reece James is suspended for three matches having picked up a red card in last season's Premier League finale - the full-back is also injured so he would have missed out regardless.
Credit: Rex Form guide
Chelsea's pre-season tour left a lot to be desired with a 3-0 victory over Club America their only win during the preparations.
A 2-2 draw with League One outfit Wrexham and a 4-1 battering at the hands of Celtic were particularly concerning for Enzo Maresca's side.
City will be buoyed, not only by Chelsea's shocking pre-season efforts, but also by their Community Shield success at Wembley last weekend.
Guardiola's side didn't look their strongest against neighbours Man Utd, relying on a late equaliser from Bernardo Silva to force an ultimately fruitful penalty shootout.
However, City started a stripped-backed side with four academy graduates in the starting XI.
Expect Pep to strengthen for the start of the Premier League campaign.
Credit: Rex
Welcome to Chelsea vs Man City
Chelsea and Man City go head to head in the Premier League's first real heavyweight clash today.
It doesn't get much tougher than this as far as first games go, with new Blues boss Enzo Maresca having to navigate a bout with four-in-a-row champions Man City at Stamford Bridge.
Maresca, having never taken charge of a Premier League game before, will be hoping his bloated squad can turn it on against former colleague Pep Guardiola.
The Italian worked alongside Pep at Man City, learning his craft and earning his stripes before venturing out to be a manager himself.
Now a Hollywood script-like welcome to Premier League management awaits him for his first competitive game in charge of the Blues since taking over from Mauricio Pochettino.
But it wouldn't be Hollywood without a star-studded cast, so naturally Chelsea have splashed the cash this summer brining in big names such as Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Pedro Neto.
However, their pre-season preparations have felt a little low-budget rather than box-office smash, with the London club winning only one of their six warm up friendlies.
Credit: Getty
