Excellent chance for Chelsea! A bouncing cross finds Costa in front of goal, and the striker's toe-poked shot beats Hart before hitting the near post. The ball then bounces into the path of Falcao, whose follow-up is pushed away from danger by the City goalkeeper. Absolutely nothing is going right for the visitors this afternoon...
90' +1
E. Mangala gets yellow.
A poor pass from Kompany fails to find Mangala, who then charges into Costa and brings him crashing to the ground with a poorly-timed challenged, which results in him being awarded a yellow card.
90'
The fourth official has indicated that there will be three minutes of added time.
89'
They may be 3-0 up, but City are still pushing forward! Silva breaks into the left-hand side of the Chelsea box before teeing up Bony, who then cuts the ball back to Toure. The Ivorian looks to shoot but is closed down quickly and is dispossessed before he can do so.
87'
Chelsea, who now look bereft of any confidence, push forward half-heartedly before earning a throw-in on the right flank. Cuadrado cuts inside from the right flank before trying to beat Hart, but his low shot is scuffed and is easily stopped.
85'
Fernandinho has scored a goal for Manchester City! Assist by David Silva.
GOAL! 3-0! City break away incredibly quickly down the left wing before Nasri sends a dangerous cross into the heart of the penalty area. It's half dealt with by Zouma before reaching Ivanovic, who falls asleep and is dispossessed by Silva. The Spaniard then tees up Fernandinho, and the Brazilian immediately unleashes a brilliant 20-yard strike that flies into the top left-hand corner of the net. Game over!
84'
Fabregas and Hazard link up well on the right flank before the latter tries to break into the penalty area, but Silva is there to out-muscle the Belgian before kick-starting a counter attack.
83'
W. Bony enters the game and replaces S. Agüero.
Aguero makes his way off the pitch to be replaced by Bony and, unsurprisingly, he receives a great round of applause from the City fans as he does so.
82'
Great chance for Toure! The big Ivorian picks up a loose ball just outside of the City penalty area and immediately unleashes a rocket of a shot that Begovic does well to push away with a strong diving save.
81'
E. Hazard gets yellow.
Toure picks up the ball in the middle of the pitch and breaks away quickly, but his run is brought to an end by Hazard, who pulls him to the ground and receives a booking as a result.
Minute
Description
79'
V. Kompany has scored a goal for Manchester City! Assist by David Silva.
M. Demichelis enters the game and replaces R. Sterling.
R. Falcao enters the game and replaces Willian.
Chelsea have made their final substitution, and it's an attacking one, with Willian making way for Falcao for the final 10 minutes.
GOAL! It's 2-0! City keep pushing forward, with Nasri and Kolarov both finding joy on the left wing before earning their side a corner. It's swung towards the near post where it meets Kompany, who beats Ivanovic in the air before sending an excellent header past Begovic and into the bottom right-hand corner of the net.
Sterling receives a round of applause as he makes his way off the pitch to be replaced by Demichelis.
78'
Silva volleys a lovely pass over the top of the Chelsea defence and into the path of Aguero, who then sprints down the right wing. He holds up the ball for a moment before curling a cross towards Nasri, but it's slightly too high for the Frenchman and he's beaten to the ball by Zouma.
76'
Sterling embarks on an excellent run down the left flank and beats Ivanovic with ease before penetrating the penalty area. The youngster then tries to cut the ball back to Aguero but the pass is cut out by Zouma at the vital moment.
74'
City defend well before pushing forward on an attack of their own, albeit one that is slightly slower than Chelsea's previous attempt. They patiently work their way down both flanks before sending the ball back to the defensive line, who then pass the ball amongst themselves as they look to frustrate the visitors.
72'
Chelsea darts down the left wing before running into trouble, forcing him into playing the ball back to Ivanovic. It's then worked over to Cuadrado, who fires a poor cross over the head of Costa and out for a goal kick.
70'
Great opportunity for Chelsea! Costa breaks into the left-hand side of the penalty area before cutting a pass back to Hazard. He takes a great first touch and unleashes a low shot from close range, but it's sent straight at Hart, who is able to parry the strike away with his feet.
68'
Lovely skill by Aguero! The Argentine twists and turns through a sea of Chelsea players before firing a low shot from just inside the penalty area, but Cahill dives in front of the strike to deflect it away from goal.
67'
Chelsea patiently work their way around the edge of the City penalty area before Costa finds Azpilicueta with a deft through-ball, but the Spaniard's run is slightly mistimed and the linesman's flag is immediately raised as a result.
65'
S. Nasri enters the game and replaces Jesús Navas.
A half-hearted Chelsea attack breaks down, allowing City to break away on a blisteringly quick counter attack. Navas holds up the ball well on the right wing before cutting the ball back to Aguero, but the Argentine slips as he fires his first-time shot and it bounces a few yards wide of the near post.
Navas makes his way off the pitch to be replaced by Nasri.
64'
J. Cuadrado enters the game and replaces Ramires.
Chelsea have made their second change of the afternoon, with Cuadrado coming on to take the place of Ramires.
63'
Ramires finds Costa with a great pass into the City penalty area, but Kompany does brilliantly to dart across and beat the striker to the ball before the Chelsea man can make contact with it.
62'
Toure charges through the centre of the Chelsea midfield before teeing up Navas on the right flank. The Spaniard immediately sends the ball back to the Ivorian, who then unleashes a curling low shot that Begovic does well to hold on to.
60'
Chelsea are enjoying a lot of the ball at the moment but the pace of the game has slowed down somewhat, and they are now finding it increasingly difficult to find a way past City's compact midfield.
58'
Ivanovic picks up the ball in acres of space on the right wing before sending in an excellent bouncing cross, but Willian and Costa are both too slow with their runs forward and end up failing to make contact in front of goal.
56'
Costa twists and turns on the left-hand side of the City penalty area as he tries to find a way past Fernandinho. He's unable to do so, however, and the Brazilian comes out on top before dispossessing the striker with an excellent sliding tackle.
54'
Willian takes over free kick duties but his first set-piece is poor, as it deflects off a City head and safely into the hands of Hart.
53'
Costa is bundled over by Mangala, and Chelsea are awarded a free kick on the right wing as a result. It's half dealt with by the City defence before finding Hazard, who is then fouled by Silva, resulting in another free kick for the visitors.
51'
Y. Touré gets yellow.
Toure becomes the latest player to enter the referee's book after a cynical challenge on Ramires as the Brazilian was breaking away on a quick counter attack.
50'
Chelsea score, but it's offside! Hazard chips a lovely pass over the top of the City defence and into the feet of Ramires, who brings it down well before toe-poking a shot past Hart from close range. The Brazilian bursts into celebration but it's brought to an end by the linesman's flag, which is quickly raised.
49'
Almost a terrible mistake by Cahill! Kolarov sends in a low cross that bounces around the Chelsea penalty area before hitting the aforementioned Englishman, who almost turns the ball into the back of his own net only for it to ricochet off Costa at the near post.
48'
B. Ivanović gets yellow.
Once again Sterling is brought down just outside of the Chelsea box, and this time it's Ivanovic who fouls the youngster, resulting in a yellow card for the Serbian.
47'
Sterling skips past Fabregas before being tripped over by the Spaniard, resulting in a free kick for City just outside of the penalty area on the left flank. It's fizzed across the face of goal by Kolarov but is just too high for Mangala, who is unable to make any sort of decent contact with the ball.
46'
K. Zouma enters the game and replaces J. Terry.
And we're underway once again!
Chelsea have decided to make a substitution, and it's a surprising one, with Terry making way for Zouma.
45' +3
The game finally resumes once again and City break away on a blisteringly quick attack. Kolarov darts down the left flank and finds Silva with a bouncing cross, but the Spaniard ends up wrestling Willian to the ground in front of goal and, as a result, Chelsea are awarded a free kick and, more importantly, a chance to breathe.
45' +2
Costa is still on the floor receiving medical treatment, and he certainly looks dazed and confused as a result of that clash with Fernandinho. Meanwhile, Cahill remains on the side of the pitch with a nose that is bleeding profusely.
45' +1
Fernandinho gets yellow.
Fernandinho rises high and strikes Costa in the head with a flailing arm, leaving the striker in a heap on the floor and in serious discomfort. That knock looked nasty, and it seems as if he's received a painful cut.
45'
The fourth official has indicated that there will be two minutes of added time.
44'
Cahill received a nasty knock to the face after clashing with Begovic as he attempted to defend City's last free kick, and he's now on the floor with a bloody nose that looks extremely painful.
43'
Excellent chance for Mangala! City patiently work their way down the left flank before earning themselves a free kick. It's swung into a great area by Kolarov and finds the aforementioned defender, but his headed effort ends up missing the far post by the narrowest of margins.
42'
Fabregas sends a lovely flick into the path of Hazard, who then cuts a pass back to Ramires on the edge of the penalty area. The Brazilian holds onto the ball for slightly too long and is dispossessed by Kompany, but it finds the aforementioned Spaniard once again, and he unleashes a great low shot that flies just wide of the near post.
40'
Hazard is clipped from behind by Silva, resulting in a free kick for Chelsea in a dangerous position 30 yards away from goal. Once again, Fabregas sends it deep, but this time it's far too deep and ends up in Hart's hands at the back post.
38'
City are all over Chelsea at the moment! They push forward in numbers, putting the visitors' back four under an incredible amount of pressure before Kolarov wins his side another corner with a dangerous cross that is deflected out of play and into the side-netting. Luckily for the reigning champions, the set-piece is poorly hit and is easily dealt with.
36'
City break forward again, with Navas and Aguero linking up well on the right-hand side of the Chelsea penalty area. The Argentine quickly tees up Sterling, who immediately unleashes a fierce strike from the edge of the penalty area that flies well over the top of the crossbar.
34'
The resulting set-piece is flung by Hazard over to the back post, where it finds Cahill, but, battling with Hart, he ends up sending his close-range header well wide of its intended target.
33'
V. Kompany gets yellow.
Kompany clumsily pushes Costa to the ground, resulting in a free kick on the left wing and a yellow card for the City captain.
31'
S. Agüero has scored a goal for Manchester City! Assist by Y. Touré.
GOAL! City have taken the lead! The hosts camp themselves inside the Chelsea half of the pitch, with ball after ball being flung into the penalty area. It finally reaches Toure on the edge of the box, and he brings it down well before teeing up Aguero, who then weaves his way through a sea of blue shirts before slotting a lovely shot into the bottom left-hand corner of the net.
30'
Willian darts down the left flank before cutting inside and beating three City players. He then unleashes a rocket of a shot from 20 yards out but it's blocked well by Mangala just inside the penalty area.
29'
Nacas skips past Azpilicueta before rifling in a low cross that is deflected out for a corner. The resulting set-piece is flung into a dangerous area inside the box but there are no City players there, allowing Matic the time and space to comfortably deal with the danger.
28'
Navas holds up the ball well before teeing up Sagna, who immediately fires a dangerous low cross into the box. It's well met by Aguero, who then sends it back to the aforementioned Spaniard, but the winger ends up running the ball out of play for a goal kick.
26'
A lengthy series of quick passes from Chelsea ends with Ramires on the right wing, and he then tries to find Costa with a curling cross. It's poorly hit, however, and misses the striker before reaching Mangala in the middle of the penalty area.
24'
Costa flies into Toure and catches the City midfielder in stomach, leaving the Ivorian in a heap on the floor. The contact was minimal but he makes the most of it, much to the annoyance of the Chelsea striker.
22'
Another great chance for Aguero! Kolarov, who has looked excellent so far, finds the Argentine once again but this time he ends up scuffing his first-time shot from the edge of the six-yard box just wide of the near post.
20'
Chelsea quickly win the ball back before Fabregas finds Hazard with a lovely chipped pass. The Belgian sprints into the left-hand side of the penalty area before fizzing a cross towards Matic, who ends up sending his close-range header wide of the near post.
19'
Costa is fouled by Fernandinho 30 yards away from the City goal, resulting in a free kick for the visitors in a very dangerous position. Fabregas takes the set-piece and sends it into the middle of the box, but Toure jumps high to deal with the danger.
17'
Begovic denies Aguero again! This time the cross comes in from Navas on the right flank, but an almost identical shot from the City striker is stopped once more by Chelsea's second-choice shot-stopper.
16'
Excellent save by Begovic! Kolarov finds himself in acres of space on the left wing, allowing him to fire in a great low cross that finds Aguero. The Argentine immediately unleashes a strike from the edge of the penalty area that the Chelsea goalkeeper does well to palm away with a strong stop.
15'
Chelsea patiently work their way towards the edge of the penalty area before Fabregas tries to find Costa with a deft chip over the top of the City defence, but the striker switches off and, as a result, the ball lands safely in the hands of Hart.
13'
Once again, Kolarov does well to get down the left flank before firing a cross off Ivanovic and out of play for a City corner. It's fired in by the aforementioned left-back but fails to beat Costa, who clears the danger with a strong header.
11'
Sterling rolls away from Ramires before sending the ball over to Kolarov on the left wing. The Serbian immediately swings in a cross that falls to the feet of Silva, but the Spaniard is quickly dispossessed by Ivanovic before the Chelsea defender is fouled.
9'
Silva is brought down on the left flank, and City are awarded a free kick in a dangerous position as a result. It's curled by Kolarov into the heart of the box, where it flies just past the outstretched foot of Aguero and into the hands of Begovic.
7'
Silva twists and turns on the left-hand side of the penalty area before teeing up Silva, but the Spaniard is unable to get the ball out of his feet before wrestling Matic to the ground, resulting in a free kick for Chelsea deep inside their own half of the pitch.
5'
City immediately break away on an incredibly quick counter attack, with Silva playing an important role in the move. It almost reaches Aguero just inside the Chelsea penalty area before Azpilicueta deals with the danger with a thumping clearance.
4'
Chelsea push forward on their first attack of the game, patiently passing the ball around midway inside the City half of the pitch. They are unable to find a way through the sea of players camped in front of them, however, and Ramires ends up losing the ball on the right wing.
3'
Sterling battles hard with Ivanovic down the left flank, but the Serbian comes out on top after winning the ball back near the corner flag. City certaintly have started the game in determined fashion.
2'
Fantastic start by City! Silva immediately carves the Chelsea defence in two with an excellent through-ball, but Aguero ends up firing his close-range shot straight into the feet of Begovic. The ball then falls to Navas, who curls a low strike just wide of the far post.
1'
And we're off! Chelsea get us underway, attacking from right to left.
Good afternoon and welcome to our live text commentary of today’s Premier League clash between Manchester City and Chelsea. My name is Ben Cullimore and I will be keeping you up to date with all of the action from the Etihad Stadium.
After a convincing opening-day performance at the Hawthorns that saw them come away with a comfortable 3-0 victory against West Bromwich Albion, City return home to take on a Chelsea side that not only struggled at times in last weekend’s game against Swansea City - resulting in a 2-2 draw for the reigning champions - but also find themselves with off-field problems to contend with so early in the season. The build-up to today’s clash has been almost entirely dominated by Jose Mourinho’s row with medical staff members Eva Carneiro and Jon Fearn in the wake of last Saturday’s draw, and it will be interesting to see if the negativity surrounding the club will have any affect on the pitch this afternoon.
Whilst Chelsea played some lovely football at times against Swansea, on the whole they looked off the pace and far from the dominating and exciting championship-winning side that we became used to last season. However, it would be foolish to read too much into one disappointing game, particularly so early in the campaign, and today’s clash gives them a good opportunity to prove themselves against an opponent that will more than likely be battling with them at the top of the table come May.
Of all this season’s title contenders, City certainly looked the most impressive on the opening day of the campaign. Their 3-0 win against West Brom showed just how up for the fight they are ahead of a season in which they are almost guaranteed to be constantly fighting alongside current holders Chelsea. Yaya Toure was excellent last weekend and is sure to play another vital role in today’s clash, whilst Sergio Aguero’s return to the starting line-up will no doubt galvanise an already extremely confident team.
There’s just over 15 minutes left to go until until kick-off, so let’s have a look at how the two teams will be lining up this afternoon…
Manchester City XI (4-2-3-1): Hart; Sagna, Kompany, Mangala, Kolarov; Toure, Fernandinho; Navas, Silva, Sterling; Aguero.
Manchester City substitutes: Caballero, Zabaleta, Clichy, Demichelis, Nasri, Iheanacho, Bony.
Chelsea XI (4-2-3-1): Begovic; Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta; Ramires, Matic; Willian, Fabregas, Hazard; Costa.
Chelsea substitutes: Blackman, Zouma, Loftus-Cheek, Mikel, Cuadrado, Remy, Falcao.
Manuel Pellegrini has decided to make just one change to the City side that started last weekend’s win against West Brom, with Wilfried Bony making way for Sergio Aguero, who comes into the squad to make his first start of the season.
Meanwhile, Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho has made two alterations to the side that started at home to Swansea, with Ramires and Asmir Begovic replacing Oscar and Thibaut Courtois, the latter of whom is suspended after receiving a red card last weekend.
The two sides are making their way out onto the pitch, with just a few minutes to go until kick-off.
HALF-TIME: MANCHESTER CITY 1-0 CHELSEA
What a feisty end to a thoroughly entertaining first half! City have been excellent from start to finish, and Chelsea's defence are really struggling to deal with the hosts' front line. Silva and Aguero have looked particularly impressive, whilst Kolarov has consistently found so much joy when bursting down the left flank. At the other end of the pitch, the reigning champions have really struggled to make a mark, with Costa looking increasingly isolated in front of goal.
The two teams are making their way back out onto the pitch ahead of the start of the second half.
FULL-TIME: MANCHESTER CITY 3-0 CHELSEA
What a win for City! Even at this early stage of the season, a big victory today was what they needed to show how determined they are to regain the title, and that is exactly what they did. They were on top at both ends of the pitch from start to finish, and they deservedly come away with their biggest win against Chelsea since 1978.
Today's disappointing performance shows that Chelsea still have a lot of work to do if they are to keep hold of their Premier League crown. Mourinho looked visibly frustrated at the final whistle, and understandbly so, as his side were outplayed in all areas of the pitch. They now go on to play West Brom in their next Premier League clash, and a victory there is imperative.
As for City, their second win in as many games sends them top of the table, and they are next in action against Everton next Sunday.
My name is Ben Cullimore and it's been an absolute pleasure describing all of the action to you today. Until next time, goodbye!
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