Chelsea versus Man City: A Champions League final preview
Will the Pep Guardiola regime at Manchester City finally achieve Champions League glory, or will Chelsea win it a second time after another tumultuous campaign?
The last time Chelsea replaced their manager mid-season and progressed to the Champions League final in 2012, they won in an upset over Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena.
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If history repeats itself, then Manchester City fans should be worried as their club seeks its first trophy in the competition tomorrow night at the Estadio Dragao in Porto, Portugal.
More under this adMore under this adHow they got here
City are looking to achieve a treble-winning season tomorrow after already securing the Carabao Cup final and the English Premier League. The side, led by manager Pep Guardiola, won the EPL comfortably by a margin of 12 points, while Chelsea sat enviously in fourth.
After a run of poor results, the London club sacked manager Frank Lampard and replaced him with the German, Thomas Tuchel, known most notably for his time at Borussia Dortmund and Paris Saint-Germain.
More under this adMore under this adThe replacement in January has worked out well so far as Chelsea defeated Atletico Madrid, Porto, and Real Madrid on their way to the final.
In contrast, Guardiola’s club has been the model of consistency this campaign. To reach the final, they overcame Borussia Monchengladbach, Dortmund, and PSG.
More under this adMore under this adIn their head-to-head results this season, City and Chelsea are 1-1, with the London club winning their most recent encounter 2-1.
Speaking ahead of the match, Guardiola said:
In terms of how excited, delighted, satisfied, nobody can beat us. I am so confident in my team. You cannot imagine how confident I am in my team and what we have to do.More under this adMore under this ad
Injury report
City has a full roster to choose from after an injury scare with Ilkay Gundogan and return from suspension for Joao Cancelo.
Chelsea had a boost to their game plan after midfielder N’golo Kante and defender Edouard Mendy resumed training this week.
More under this adMore under this adTuchel said:
N’Golo is looking good and I hope he stays like that for Saturday. Edou made a huge improvement with the management of pain from when the injury happened, which is good. We hope to have him back. If he is fit, then Edou will play.