Chelsea vs Manchester City: Kick-off time, how to watch on TV and live stream, team news, line-ups

Categories: Football | Published by: AC

09/12/2018

Updated: 26/01/2023

After the first serious wobble of Maurizio Sarri’s tenure, Chelsea really need a win this weekend. Unfortunately they are up against Manchester City, so that is far from guaranteed.

Having lost to Wolves in the midweek, the Blues have now won two of their last five in all competitions and are 10 points off top spot in the Premier League. While ‘Sarriball’ still needs time to come to fruition, anyone who has even a passing knowledge of Roman Abramovich’s methods will realise that time is at a premium for its chain-smoking originator.

A trip to Stamford Bridge is never easy, however, and a wounded Chelsea side could prove dangerous opponents for City.

The Blues have won two of their last five against Pep Guardiola’s team, a passable record compared to most. That said, City are still unbeaten in the league and last dropped points in early October.

Here’s everything you need to know about the game:

Match details

Kick off: 5:30pm on Saturday 8 December at Stamford Bridge

TV channel: BT Sport 1, while subscribers can stream the game on the BT Sport app and BT Sport.com

Referee: Jonathan Moss

Form: Chelsea LWWDL, Manchester City WWDWW

Odds: Chelsea 16/5, Draw 3/1, Manchester City 19/20

Team news and line-ups

Pep Guardiola may have to do without Sergio Aguero this weekend (Getty Images)

While Mateo Kovacic and Marcos Alonso were said to be fitness doubts ahead of the Wolves game, both featured for Chelsea in midweek and should be available for Saturday. The Blues are relatively injury free at the moment, though Victor Moses was left out of the squad on Wednesday and reportedly has a back problem.

City, meanwhile, are without Sergio Aguero owing to the adductor injury which kept him out of victories over Watford and Bournemouth. Claudio Bravo and Benjamin Mendy remain out for the long-term, while Kevin de Bruyne will not feature despite a return to training.

Chelsea line-up (4-3-3): Kepa; Azpilicueta, Rudiger, David Luiz, Alonso; Kante, Jorginho, Kovacic; Willian, Hazard, Pedro.

Man City line-up (4-3-3): Ederson; Walker, Stones, Laporte, Delph; D. Silva, Fernandinho, Bernardo Silva; Mahrez, Sterling, Sane.