‘I’d be shocked’… Paul Merson predicts Chelsea vs Manchester City result and names three Blues players who will cause ‘massive problems’

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Chelsea are back in action this weekend when they travel to the Etihad Stadium to take on Manchester City.

Chelsea returned to winning ways last time out with a much-needed 3-1 victory at home to Wolverhampton Wanderers on Monday night. As a result, the Blues moved up to fourth in the Premier League.

Now, Enzo Maresca’s side take on fifth-placed Man City on Saturday evening in another important fixture.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
1	LiverpoolLiverpool	21	15	5	1	50	20	30	50
2	ArsenalArsenal	22	12	8	2	43	21	22	44
3	Nottm ForestNottingham Forest	22	13	5	4	33	22	11	44
4	ChelseaChelsea	22	11	7	4	44	27	17	40
5	Man CityManchester City	22	11	5	6	44	29	15	38
6	NewcastleNewcastle	22	11	5	6	38	26	12	38

Chelsea’s internal aim is to get back in the Champions League, so a win over rivals Man City in a couple of days time would be a huge boost to help achieving that goal. Hopefully, the team can now start to build some momentum after a slow start to 2025.

• READ MORE: Manchester City winger Jeremy Doku chooses between Chelsea legend Eden Hazard and Cristiano Ronaldo

Paul Merson predicts Manchester City vs Chelsea, names key Blues trio

Paul Merson is actually confident that Chelsea will pick up three points during Saturday’s trip to Man City.

It’s interesting that he’s named Blues stars Cole Palmer, Moises Caicedo and Pedro Neto as individuals that could play a key role this weekend.

“I think Chelsea beat them (Man City) this weekend, I really do. I think Chelsea’s energy and Cole Palmer getting in them little pockets, I think, will cause massive problems,” Merson told Sky Sports.

“Cole Palmer will get into pockets, and I just don’t know how [Bernardo] Silva and [Mateo] Kovacic can live with Cole Palmer. You might say at the other end the other way around, [Moises] Caicedo can do a job with Kevin De Bruyne, 100 per cent.

“I see Chelsea causing them massive problems. With [Pedro] Neto playing against [Matheus] Nunes as well down Chelsea’s left and Man City’s right, I see him running him absolutely ragged

“I’d be shocked if Chelsea lost this game.”

Whenever Chelsea play well this season, Palmer is usually at the heart of things in the No.10 position. Interestingly, Jason Cundy spotted Palmer deliberately dropped deeper against Wolves to get more possession and dictate play.

Based on how Man City have performed this season, Palmer could have a field day against his former club picking up space in-between the lines.

Chelsea vs Man City head to head

Since Chelsea beat Man City in the Champions League final back in May 2021, this fixture has actually been quite a one-sided contest.

Here is a look at the previous 10 meetings between the two English giants:

Although recent history suggests Man City should go into this weekend full of confidence against Chelsea, the reigning Premier League champions are going through a tough season. It’s been remarkable to see a Pep Guardiola side lose so many matches.

The latest setback for Man City was in last night’s Champions League group stages, where they let a two-goal advantage slip in a 4-2 defeat away at Paris Saint-Germain.