Manchester City 1 Chelsea 3: Five things we learnt as Antonio Conte’s Blues put in spectacular second-half shift
Diego Costa, Willian and Eden Hazard cancelled out Gary Cahill's own goal in a fiery, top-of-the-table battle at the Etihad
SATURDAY lunchtime's game between Manchester City and Chelsea was arguably the match of the Premier League season so far.
It truly had everything; an own goal, missed open goals, stunning strikes, blistering counter attacks and even a mass brawl.
But what can we take away from the clash between Pep Guardiola's men and Antonio Conte and Co?
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1. CONT BEAT 'EM
FIRST thing's first, Chelsea are officially, 100 per cent the team to beat in the race for the Premier League title this season.
Coming into this one, it was dubbed the biggest game of the Blues' season - and would prove the real gauge of how they could fare.
A stunning second-half performance blitzed City on their own turf to well and truly put their name at the top of the list and exert their dominance as the best team in England right now.
2. ETIHAD WOES
BELIEVE it or not, Man City have not won at home in the Premier League since a 4-0 win over Bournemouth on September 17.
Their winless run on home soil is rapidly approaching the three-month mark... Certainly not a record they would like to continue.
At just four points behind league-leading Chelsea, despite the 3-1 defeat on Saturday, just imagine where they could be if they get their act together at the Etihad.
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3. COST? PRICELESS
IN a game being billed as a battle of the strikers - Sergio Aguero vs Diego Costa - it's plain to see who won.
While virtually anonymous in the first half, Spanish striker Costa burst into life in the second, out-muscling Nicolas Otamendi for the equaliser while contributing hugely all over the pitch.
He now leads the Premier League with 11 goals to Aguero's ten. Meanwhile, the Argentine ended his afternoon with a horror lunge on David Luiz which resulted in a fully-justified red card.
4. FIERY FIXTURE
AS Leicester proved last season, passion in football is absolutely paramount... And this game was absolutely dripping in it.
Tough tackles and desperate lunges were on display from the opening minute, when Eden Hazard was on the receiving end of a tough tackle from Fernandinho.
And it carried on until the very final minute, when tensions boiled over and both the Brazilian and Aguero received their marching orders for shocking, needless violence.
5. PLAY TO YOUR STRENGTHS, PEP
WHILE the focus was on Antonio Conte picking Cesc Fabregas when the teams were announced, it's worth nothing Pep Guardiola once again changed his formation and personnel for the clash.
In a big game, the temptation is always to neutralise your opponent's threat, but in this instance - particularly at home - Guardiola really should have played to his strengths.
With three full-backs on the bench, he could easily have started with a back four and made Chelsea pay from the first whistle... Instead, missed chances and botched tactics have handed the Blues a massive lift in the race for the Premier League title.