Chelsea v Manchester City: Vital Six Pointer on Saturday Evening

There are a number of interesting fixtures from this weekend’s Premier League schedule but none will be as exciting as the contest between Chelsea and Manchester City on Saturday. Before a ball was kicked in anger this season, they were the ‘big two’ as far as the bookies were concerned.

Manchester City spent heavily over the summer and were installed as ante post favourites to take the title but Chelsea were the defending champions so clearly we couldn’t write them off. The question of 2017/18 title winners could therefore start to unravel at Stamford Bridge this weekend.

Match Odds

Can a match really be called a six pointer at this early stage of the season? When the final places are decided at the end of the campaign then it’s matches such as these that will have ultimately decided the destiny of the trophy.

As for the match odds, it’s a tight market as you might expect but it’s one where Manchester City are installed as favourites despite conceding home advantage. City are currently on offer at a top price of 153/100 with MarathonBet while a victory for Chelsea is available at best odds of 19/10 with 188Bet.

Finally, the draw completes this market at a 23/10 with bet365 and given the close nature of those two sides this will be an option that will appeal to many.

Obviously there is value in this market although some will be hesitant to back Chelsea after Antonio Conte’s men could only draw with Arsenal the last time they were at Stamford Bridge but they have beaten Spurs away from home and apart from that shock result at home to Burnley on the opening day of the season, they look like title challengers once again.

So, we are hedging towards a home win here but let’s look at the players who could decide the game either way.

Individual Goal Scorers

Alvaro Morata has been in prolific form since joining up with Chelsea in the summer and having hammered a hat trick against Stoke last weekend, he will look at strong pick at best odds of 9/2 with either bet365 or Boylesports.

Sergio Aguero starts this game as favourite and is on offer at a top price of 41/10 with MarathonBet while his Manchester City strike partner Gabriel Jesus is further back at a best of 5/1 with bet365.

Having returned from injury, Eden Hazard is available at best odds of 13/2 with 888Sports and 32Red but he has yet to find his scoring boots after a prolific campaign from midfield in 2016/17. There’s plenty of value in this market with City’s Raheem Sterling in good touch and on offer at a top price of 17/2 with bet365 and Leroy Sane available at those same best odds of 17/2 with bet365 again.

There’s almost too much choice but Morata continued his fine form in midweek and looks a good bet in the anytime market at the very least where he is a 23/17 best price to find the net in 90 minutes.

Other Side Bets

Taking the popular side bets into consideration, you can back Both Teams to Score here at a top price of 8/13 with Sun Bets and 10Bet. It’s a strong option but it looks a little short, particularly if you’re taking into account Chelsea’s goalless draw with Arsenal earlier this month.

Over 2.5 goals doesn’t look too exciting either at best odds of 4/5 with MarathonBet so, as our first two tips for this game are a little conservative, we need to look at something longer. We agree with the bookies that it will be tight and that there may not be too many goals in this match so best odds of 10/1 with bet365 on a correct score of Chelsea 2 Manchester City 1 may be the way to go.

One thing is certain – there is value in this match and while it is tough to call, Chelsea to win is a great option at 19/10 and they have the quality to deliver on that price.

Best Bets

• Chelsea to win at 19/10 with 188Bet
• Alvaro Morata to score anytime at 23/17 with 32Red
• Correct Score of Chelsea 2 Manchester City 1 at 10/1 with bet365