Get ready for a big Premier League clash. Manchester City will take on Chelsea at the Etihad Stadium this Sunday, January 4, 2026. This match kicks off at 5:30 PM GMT. It’s a crucial game for both teams as they push for their season goals.
The Stakes Are High at the Etihad
Manchester City comes into this one in good form. They’re sitting third in the league table right now. City has collected 41 points from 13 wins, 2 draws, and 4 losses. That’s a strong record, and they’re definitely title contenders. However, they had a recent stalemate against Sunderland on New Year’s Day. So, they’ll want to get back to winning ways.
Chelsea, on the other hand, is currently in fifth place. They have 30 points from 8 wins, 6 draws, and 5 losses. The Blues are really fighting for a Champions League spot. A win here would give them a massive boost. They just drew 2-2 with Bournemouth, which was a bit frustrating, you know?
On top of that, Chelsea have won only one out of their last six matches in the league. According to ESPN stats, both teams have a lot riding on this fixture.
Chelsea Team News and the Interim Boss
Chelsea will be without Moises Caicedo for this game. He picked up his fifth yellow card of the season against Bournemouth. So, he’s suspended. That’s a pretty big miss for them, honestly.
Interestingly, Chelsea’s Under-21s head coach, Calum McFarlane, is leading the senior team for this match. He’s facing his former employers, which is a neat storyline. McFarlane spoke to the press after his first training session. He sounded pretty positive about a couple of key players.
“Cole’s ready to go,” McFarlane said about Cole Palmer. “I don’t know for sure, but he was in a really good place in training, so we’ll see how the next couple of days look.”
He also gave an update on Marc Cucurella, saying:
“With Marc it is positive [that he’s back training] and we will see with him. We’re undecided on that [whether he will play], I don’t have the full information on him as of yet.”
So, Palmer seems likely to feature. Cucurella is still a bit up in the air. Chelsea fans will be hoping both can play.
A Rich History of Rivalry
This isn’t just any game; it’s Manchester City versus Chelsea. There’s a lot of history here. Chelsea hasn’t actually won at the Etihad Stadium since May 2021. That was a 2-1 victory behind closed doors. Raheem Sterling scored for City first. Then Sergio Aguero missed a penalty, and Hakim Ziyech equalized. Marcos Alonso got a late winner.
Just a few weeks after that, Chelsea beat City again. That was in the Champions League final in Porto. Kai Havertz scored the only goal. It was a famous win for Chelsea. That’s the last time they’ve beaten City in any competition. It’s been a while, hasn’t it?
The Chelsea FC website has a lot of interesting historical notes. The first time these clubs met was way back in April 1908. Chelsea won that one 3-0. And then there was a big Division Two game in 1984. Chelsea was already promoted, but they beat City 2-0. That stopped City from joining them in the top flight. Pretty cool stuff.
Key Stats and What to Watch For
City really likes to score at home. They’ve won their last five Premier League home games. And in those games, they’ve scored three or more goals each time. So, Chelsea’s defense will need to be sharp.
The Blues have been pretty good defensively on the road lately, though. They’ve kept four clean sheets in their last six away league games. That’s a good sign. They also tend to have a lot of possession in their games. They’ve had the lion’s share of possession in 18 of their 19 top-flight matches this season. The only exception was against Arsenal when they had 10 men.
According to Sofascore, City ranks 3rd and Chelsea 5th. It’s gonna be a tough test for Chelsea’s young squad. Their starting XI against Bournemouth was the youngest in the Premier League this season. The average age was just 23 years and 157 days.
City has opened the scoring in 15 of their 19 matches this season. But here’s a thing: they’ve lost all three times an opponent scored first. That could be a pretty important stat for Chelsea. Maybe they need to try to get an early goal.
This match is certainly going to be a fascinating encounter. Both teams want those three points to overcome their last stalemate games. It promises to be a really good game of football. You can check more details on ESPN’s team pages.
Ishaan Singh 
Baishali Karmakar