Manchester City aiming to get off to a flying start at Chelsea

Manchester City kick off their quest to win a fifth consecutive Premier League title with a trip to face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.

The bookmakers rate Pep Guardiola’s side as the favourites to retain their crown, but their rivals will be eager to knock them off their perch.

Man City are rated as 22/25 shots on online sports betting platforms to win at Chelsea and they will fancy their chances of picking up three points.

However, Chelsea have the potential to be dangerous opponents given they have a point to prove under new manager Enzo Maresca this season.

Chelsea eager to make an early statement

Chelsea have become the Premier League’s primary ‘banter club’ over the past couple of years, with their outlandish spending on players failing to deliver the desired results.

Maresca has replaced Mauricio Pochettino as manager and is already under immense pressure after his team failed to perform during their pre-season fixtures.

A 4-2 defeat against Man City in the United States highlighted the size of the task Maresca faces with Chelsea and he will be desperate to secure a positive result on Sunday.

Chelsea have continued to splash the cash this summer, leaving the new boss with a bloated squad heading into a hugely important campaign for the club.

The Blues have an excellent record on the opening day of the season, picked up more points (67) than any other club during the Premier League era.

However, they face a Man City side that has been head and shoulders above their rivals in recent years and they could struggle to enhance that record.

Guardiola’s team lost just three times last season and it would be no surprise to see them kick off the new campaign with a victory over Chelsea.

James misses out for Chelsea

Chelsea captain Reece James is suspended after being sent off in the penultimate match last season, but Maresca has few other concerns beyond that.

Conor Gallagher is unlikely to be involved amid interest from Atletico Madrid, while Ben Chilwell will probably miss out after Maresca hinted he could leave the club.

Cole Palmer will be Chelsea’s key player against his former club having finished the previous campaign as their top scorer with 22 goals.

Oscar Bobb misses out for Man City after fracturing his fibula, while Rodri will also be absent after sustaining a hamstring injury in the 2024 European Championship final.

Phil Foden, Kyle Walker and John Stones all missed the Community Shield last weekend and have only been back in training for a few days do may not start.

Jack Grealish is also doubtful for the visitors after he picked up a knock in training before the Community Shield.

Chelsea vs Man City predicted line-ups

• Chelsea: Sanchez, Gusto, Fofana, Colwill, Cucurella, Fernandez, Lavia, Caicedo, Neto, Nkunku, Palmer.
• Man City: Ederson, Lewis, Akanji, Dias, Gvardiol, Silva, Kovacic, Savinho, De Bruyne, Doku, Haaland.

Man City fancied to make a winning start

The two sides fought out a 4-4 thriller in the corresponding fixture last season and could deliver plenty of entertainment this weekend.

Chelsea are expected to play on the front foot, which could open the door for Man City to pick them apart on the counter-attack.

While Rodri is a big miss for Guardiola’s side, they should have enough quality to see off a Chelsea team which looked fragile during pre-season.

Chelsea 1-3 Manchester City.

Manchester City aiming to get off to a flying start at Chelsea