Reeling from shock Paris defeat, fragile Manchester City face Chelsea in must-win EPL battle

JUST when Manchester City appeared to have put their recent woes behind them and resumed normal service, Pep Guardiola’s side once again find themselves under the microscope as they prepare to host top-four rivals Chelsea in the English Premier League (EPL) on Saturday (Sunday 1.30 am kickoff, Singapore time).

A 6-0 hammering of Ipswich last weekend looked like the moment the defending champions had put all the frustrations of the first half of the season to bed in spectacular fashion. But it proved something of an illusion as a horrible capitulation to Paris Saint Germain on Wednesday left City in grave danger of being eliminated from the Champions League at the first hurdle. City led 2-0 in the French capital but ended up losing 4-2 – a defeat that left them in a dismal 25th position in the 36-team table and needing to win their final match against Club Brugge next week to have a chance of a playoff spot.

City are unbeaten in five games in the EPL and will leapfrog Chelsea into fourth with a win. Chelsea – which ended a five-game winless streak in the league when they beat Wolverhampton Wanderers on Monday – will relish the chance to put another dent in City‘s already bruised ego.

Chelsea’s EPL title challenge may have faded of late but they are still in fourth spot, two points ahead of fifth-placed City and the mood will be buoyant ahead of the match at the Etihad Stadium. When the two clubs met at Stamford Bridge on the opening day of the season last August, City comfortably won 2-0 and few at the time would have given Chelsea much chance of being above Guardiola’s side just four months later.

But the new reality, at least for this season, is that City are embroiled in a fierce scrap with the likes of Chelsea, Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest, Newcastle and even Bournemouth to try and ensure they are in the Champions League next season. After Chelsea, the fixture list does not get any easier for Guardiola’s men as they face Arsenal, Newcastle, Liverpool and Tottenham in their next four games.

City’s slump, exacerbated by injuries, has forced them to be unusually active in the January transfer market. Forward Omar Marmoush could make his debut against Chelsea after sealing a £59 million (S$98.8 million) move from Eintracht Frankfurt, while Abdukodir Khusanov and Vitor Reis will bolster Guardiola’s defensive options.

Surprise packages

Nottingham Forest and Bournemouth, both looking to upset the established order by qualifying for next season’s Champions League, meet at the Vitality Stadium on Saturday (11 pm, Singapore time) in an intriguing match-up between two in-form teams.

Forest are in third place and in prime position to qualify for Europe’s top-tier competition next season, while injury-hit Bournemouth are in seventh place and undefeated in a club-record 10 EPL games.

Qualification for the Champions League would be an astonishing achievement for Forest, which were last crowned European champions in 1979 and 1980 under then-manager Brian Clough. Bournemouth have never qualified for any European competitions in their history but currently sit seventh, just three points off the top four.

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Newcastle, which are in sixth place, travel to bottom club Southampton on Saturday (11 pm) seeking to bounce back from their crushing 4-1 home defeat by Bournemouth last weekend.

Runaway leaders Liverpool, six points clear of both Arsenal and Forest and having played a game less, host third-from-bottom Ipswich on Saturday (11 pm). Kicking off at the same time is Arsenal’s game against lowly Wolves, with the Gunners knowing they need to start putting together a long winning streak.

Woeful campaigns

This weekend’s focus is on two clubs desperately trying to turn around their woeful league campaigns.

Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou reportedly still has the backing of the London club’s top brass despite his side sitting 15th in the table with only 24 points – eight above the relegation zone.

Spurs have won once in their last 10 league games but a visit from a Leicester City side on Sunday (10 pm) that have lost seven in a row offers an ideal chance to turn the corner. Another big flop, however, would pile enormous pressure on Postecoglou.

Manchester United are in 13th spot and only two points above Spurs. The Red Devils’ manager Ruben Amorim last week claimed they could be the worst United side ever – remarks that he later clarified by saying the criticism was more about him than his players.

On Monday (3 am), United face 10th-placed Fulham at Craven Cottage. Also on Monday (12.30 am), eighth-placed Aston Villa – which lost to Monaco in the Champions League in midweek – face struggling West Ham.