Chelsea and Liverpool drew 2-2 at Stamford Bridge, and the home team completed a counterattack after falling behind by two goals in the first 25 minutes. While the Blues' tenacity is commendable, the long-term beneficiaries of this dramatic game are actually Manchester City. They achieved a more satisfactory result and were further consolidated at the top of the table. City are currently 10 points ahead of second place and the success of defending their title looks just around the corner.
Just a few weeks ago, a lot of people were talking about the most interesting title battle in the Premier League in years – three teams were involved and all performed well. But from the end of November, the situation changed. City won a nine-game winning streak and scored 27 points. Chelsea have won just three of their last nine league games, recording 14 points, while Liverpool have not won since mid-December, drawing two games and losing to Leicester City for 17 points (one less). City scored 28 goals and conceded seven goals in 9 rounds, basically crushing the opponent's defence.
One could argue that City have strong resources to prop up their time as champions again, but it looks like there is some fresh momentum at the Etihad. City in the 21-22 season is different from Manchester City in the 18-19 season, they have the current advantage without a shooter. However, with Ferran Torres moving to Barca, they are clearly preparing for the addition of new signings.
City have suffered two defeats and are therefore not invincible, but their performances in recent rounds have been relentless, with seven goals against Leeds United, six goals against Leicester City and a nod to Arsenal in their opening game of 2022. In addition, with Liverpool three-timers Salah, Mane and Keita leaving for the Africa Cup of Nations, the Blue Moon's advantage at the top of the table may be further extended. Manchester City and Chelsea have just two players each – Mahrez and Mendy left the squad.
City lost six games when they won the Premier League last year, after giving Liverpool the title and losing nine times. Some thought they had lost the momentum that Guardiola had brought, but then it seemed to be back on the winning track. There is no doubt that Liverpool's rise has been a stimulus for City to reach new heights, and considering they have a better squad thickness, they will once again overwhelm Klopp's side.
City are also looking forward to learning from last season's Champions League final and launching a reboot to the top of Europe once again. They will face Portugal Sport in the round of 16.
Defending Champions League champions Chelsea looked like a regrouped Premier League title contender in autumn, but had lost some of its magic. Their summer window signing Lukaku didn't have the desired effect, with the Belgian goalscorer hinting in the media that he wanted to return to Serie A, which could cause some internal problems for the club. In the Abu era, the performance of the big-name strikers brought in by Chelsea was uneven. Lukaku is likely to join Torres, Shepchenko, Mutu, Batshuayi and Morata. If you count the sale of Salah, De Bruyne and Lukaku when he first played, the Blues had mixed luck in bringing in goalscorers. Behind every Costa and Drogba there is always a heavy signing who has not performed well. If the club decides to let the little monster leave, then there will be a shortage of big players in the front, but who can make up for this gap?
Liverpool have also had outstanding performances at some point in the season, particularly in attack, with Salah already scoring 16 league goals. They let the victory slip away against Brentford, Manchester City, Brighton, Tottenham and Chelsea, but have only lost two games so far, remaining unbeaten at home and achieving excellent away wins over Manchester United (5-0), Watford (5-0) and Everton (4-1). Their defense is sometimes flawed, but they have conceded just 18 goals in 20 league games. The problem is that with a formidable opponent like Manchester City leading the way, even occasional defeats can be fatal. Liverpool and Chelsea have both experienced too many draws, while Guardiola's side have been pushing relentlessly and can win games even when they are not in their best form.
Usually, when a team starts winning long in a row, it is compared to past champions. We've seen some of the "best teams of all time" quickly become a thing of the past, just as we saw City win the domestic Treble in 2019. What's really frightening is that Manchester City aren't a finished product at the moment, so it's hard to imagine how amazing they will perform when all the parts are finally in place. There is still time for change in the 21-22 season, but will there be a team that beats Manchester City? As the season progresses, that likelihood seems to be getting lower and lower.