Chelsea vs Man City - Math and aftermath

Two of the top three meet in an eagerly anticipated clash on Sunday as the hosts look to usher in a new era at Stamford Bridge following Roberto Di Matteo's shock dismissal.

PROBABLE LINEUPS

CHELSEA Cech Ivanovic, Cahill, Luiz, Cole Mikel, Ramires, Hazard, Oscar, Mata Torres

MANCHESTER CITY Hart Maicon, Nastasic, Lescott, Zabaleta, Toure, Garcia Silva, Nasri,Tevez Aguero

(As per Goal.com)

Bold Predictions and analysis  

Both teams are going through rough patches, accumulating in a week in Europe which saw Man City knocked out of the Champions League, and Chelsea likely to follow them to the Europa League after another loss.

Add to this the recent sacking of Roberto Di Matteo and subsequent appointment of Rafael Benitez, as well as the constant speculation over Roberto Mancini's long-term future at Man City, and it sets the scene perfectly for a tantalizing encounter in West London on Sunday.

oth Chelsea and Man City have expensive strike forces, with noticeably mixed fortunes, but the middle of the pitch is where this match is sure to be won.

Whether or not Benitez can get the best out of Fernando Torres, it is unlikely to happen in one match. This will leave much for the likes of Eden Hazard, Oscar and Juan Mata to do.

The most intriguing battle is the one between Juan Mata and Yaya Toure. The Spaniard will be hoping to have a say in the outcome of this match, but the Ivorian midfielder is perhaps the best-suited candidate to stop him.

One way or the other, much of the game is sure to be decided in the middle of the pitch.

It has been suggested that one of the reasons why Benitez was chosen as interim manager was his potential to get the most out of Fernando Torres.

Whether you believe this or not, it is likely that Torres will start Sunday's match.

Di Matteo may have taken the fall for a string of poor results, but the fact remains that Chelsea have a real lack of strikers, and the match against Juventus midweek has proved the need to play with at least one.

Benitez may want to eventually alter the 4-2-3-1 system favored by Di Matteo, but he is sure to stick with something familiar for Sunday's match.

Whether or not Torres is able to find the net, there are sure to be lots of goals on Sunday.

Fixtures between the top three this season have regularly been high-scoring affairs, and Carlos Tevez currently has a record of six premier league goals against Chelsea. Only two players have scored more.

What is more, the last time there was no score between these two sides was February 2005.

Rafa Benitez seems to have his work cut out for him.

Not a popular figure among Chelsea fans after his time at Liverpool, he will have to work to win over the fans, as well as win matches.

Sunday's game will tell us a lot about Benitez's reign, both in terms of how the fans welcome him, as well as what kinds of changes he might make on the pitch.

Roberto Mancini insisted that his future is secure after the club's recent Champion's League exit, but the club's ownership might not take kindly to a loss this weekend.

Although Sheikh Mansour is not as quick with the guillotine as Roman Abramovich, he may decide that Mancini must go before things get worse.

Alternatively, a win against Chelsea will set them back on track, leaving them sitting pretty at the top of the EPL table.

Some facts:

• Chelsea has not gone three games at Stamford Bridge without a Premier League win since December 2008, but has lost just two of its last 15 home games.

• The Blues have both scored and conceded in their last seven Premier League games.

• Chelsea is behind only Arsenal with victories against Manchester City, the Blues' 20 trailing the Gunners' 21.

• Manchester City striker Carlos Tevez has scored six goals in his last six Premier League games against Chelsea.

• There have been five penalties awarded in the last six league meetings between the two sides.

• City is unbeaten in their last eight Premier League away games, winning five.

• The champions have conceded more than one goal away from home only once in 11 months in the league.