Holders Manchester City host European champions Chelsea at the Etihad in the pick of the Premier League fixtures this week, with both clubs battling each other to finish second in the table, a long way behind runaway leaders Manchester United.

Where to Watch Live

Kick-off is set for 1.30pm GMT, with Sky Sports 1, Sky Sports 1 HD, Sky Sports 3D, Sky Sports 1 Ireland and Sky Go providing live coverage in the UK. Watch the highlights of the game on Match of the Day 2 on BBC One and BBC One HD at 10.25pm GMT.

Manchester City
Reuters

Overview

City are second in the league, four points clear of third-paced Chelsea. While Roberto Mancini has yet to concede defeat in the title race, United's 12-point lead at the top is now becoming too far a gulf to catch and a win for Rafa Benitez's men on Sunday could turn out to be a crucial and season-defining result, with just 12 gameweeks to go in the English top flight.

Anything but all three points against the Blues could well be the final nail in the coffin for the defending champions, while Chelsea are keen to post a win over City and remain in the top three, with London rivals Tottenham Hotspur - led by Blues' former manager Andre Villas-Boas - breathing down their necks.

The two clubs, who played out a stalemate in the reverse fixture at Stamford Bridge in November, head into this tie on the back of the same set of results, when it comes to Premier League outings: three wins, one defeat and two draws in their last six matches. Immediate history in this fixture favours City, who have beaten Chelsea in their last three clashes at the Etihad.

Form Guide

Manchester City

  • Last Five Games (all competitions, most recent first): W L D D W
  • Last Match: Manchester City 4 - 0 Leeds United

Chelsea

  • Last Five Games (all competitions, most recent first): D W W W L
  • Last Match: Chelsea 1 - 1 Sparta Prague
Chelsea
Reuters

Team News

Manchester City: Vincent Kompany (calf) and Gareth Barry (angle) are injury doubts and will have late fitness tests, while Micah Richards (knee) remains sidelined. Mancini will make a few changes to the side that beat Leeds last week and field a more familiar line-up against Chelsea, with Joe Hart, Gael Clichy and Edin Dzeko set to replace Costil Pantilimon, Aleksandar Kolarov and Carlos Tevez.

Probable Line-up: (4-2-3-1): Hart; Zabaleta, Kompany, Nastasic, Clichy; Y Toure, Garcia; Silva, Aguero, Milner; Dzeko

Chelsea: Benitez has a near full-strength squad at his disposal for the trip to Etihad; long-term absentee Oriol Romeu (knee) is the only first-team player unavailable. The Blues will also make a bunch of changes from the rotated side that played Sparta in midweek, with Frank Lampard, Branislav Ivanovic, Ashley Cole, Eden Hazard and Demba Ba all expected to return to the starting line-up.

Probable Line-up: (4-2-3-1): Cech; Azpilicueta, Ivanovic, Cahill, Cole; Lampard, Ramires; Moses, Mata, Hazard; Ba

Manchester United FC London