Manchester City was in imperious form against Londoners Chelsea at Stamford Bridge today and look set to challenge Arsenal for the EPL title come the end of the season.

Pep Guardiola’s team brushed aside a limpid Chelsea now under the management of Liam Rosenior.

Manchester City was cautious in the first half and didn’t take the game to Chelsea who, to be fair, had the better of it with Marc Cucurella seeing his goal disallowed.

Cole Palmer looked vibrant for Chelsea, threatening from midfield, but had a quieter second half. 

Come the second half, Manchester City turned on the turbo.  Jeremy Docku was able to find Haaland time and time again, and the Norwegian should have scored in the opening minutes of the second half.

Manchester City didn’t have to wait too long before chalking up the first goal with English defender Nico O’Reilly heading past Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez from close range in the 57th minute. 

The next 17 minutes saw an awesome display of football by  Manchester City, which had most of the 40,000 Chelsea supporters feeling glum. 

Marc Guehi, who has been excellent this season, got the second goal for City from a set piece, with the irrepressible Jeremy Dock bagging the third goal to seal all three points and have Arsenal clearly in their sights.

Rayan Cheri was outstanding for Manchester City today and was the best player on the park. 

Credit must go to Pep Guardiola’s team for this all-around performance, and if City can keep this up, Arsenal will have a lot to worry about. As it now stands, Arsenal lead the EPL on 70 points, having played 3 2 games. Manchester City are in second place with 64 points, having played 31 games and have a game in hand.  Arsenal face Manchester City next Sunday in what promises to be an epic encounter.

For the last few seasons, Arsenal have faded away when it mattered most. Will this be the same story come the end of the 2026 season?

Chelsea are on 48 points and are struggling under the new manager, having been beaten five times in their last six games. If this continues, Chelsea could miss out on a Champions League spot edged out by Aston Villa or Liverpool. 

Manchester City has put together some remarkable performances this spring, beating Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea successively while keeping clean sheets.

Speaking after the game, Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola said, “In the second half, we stepped up after being a bit cautious in the first half. In the second half, the boys had nothing to lose and found the reward. Rodri is an extraordinary player and makes us play much better.”

And on catching Arsenal?

 “We are now going to take it step by step. I don’t have a crystal ball to see what is going to happen in the future. We played really good against Chelsea. If the spirit is there, we will be there. Naturally, I have concerns about our injuries with so many games coming up.”