The Dark Arts of David Luiz Are What Inspired Chelsea's Manchester City Win

It's the perceived wisdom that goals and only goals win football matches. That may be true in a literal sense, but so does knowing how to steal an advantage at a decisive moment and benefit from it.

There was no shortage of risk when Chelsea's Cesar Azpilicueta sold short David Luiz on a pass, with the Brazilian then stepping in front of Sergio Aguero to upend him after 30 minutes at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday. The game was goalless, but that would have changed had Luiz not blocked off the Manchester City striker.

Aguero would have been through on goal. It would have been the Argentinean against Thibaut Courtois, one-on-one, and invariably, those contests only go one way when he is involved.

There was no celebration, though. Instead, Aguero found himself in a bundle on the ground with Luiz eventually running away with the ball. There was no free-kick and no case to answer—therefore no red card for Luiz, which he would have been expecting for denying a clear goalscoring opportunity.

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The referee got it wrong. As Gary Neville observed in commentary for Sky Sports, Anthony Taylor seemed to freeze, checking with his linesman on the other side of the pitch whether it was a free-kick, passing the buck for a decision. It was a major call from Taylor, and one that would change the complexion of the game.

Goals from Diego Costa, Willian and Eden Hazard sealed a 3-1 victory for Antonio Conte's Premier League leaders. Yet it was Luiz's invention that built the platform to get them there.

It wasn't Luiz's concern that Taylor lost his nerve at a vital moment. That was for City and the referee to worry about. Luiz had done his job when protecting the Chelsea goal—that he did it with the assistance of some gamesmanship wasn't important.

Indeed, it's by championing those dark arts that the best players—defenders, midfielders and strikers—often excel in football. It's a quality just as valuable as a player's ability to read the game or position himself to finish off an attacking move.

Frowned upon it may be, but it's all about game management. It's about demonstrating an intelligence to manipulate and come out on top in the way we saw Luiz do in Manchester.

Chelsea won on Saturday because they controlled their performance better than their opponents did theirs. Kevin De Bruyne may have missed two good opportunities in front of goal to give City an unassailable advantage at 1-0, but that wasn't the point.

City got it wrong when it mattered most.

Take Chelsea's second goal, scored by Willian on the break after Ilkay Gundogan had come close at the other end. Within 10 seconds of the ball's being cleared from the Chelsea box, it was in the back of the City net after Costa's perfectly weighted pass into Willian's path had set him free on goal.

It was a wonderful team move—one that summed up just how effective Chelsea are in such situations. There's more to Conte's side than being a counter-attack team, although their effectiveness on the break can't be doubted. The execution from back to front in the build-up to Willian's goal showed us that.

If he had any hair, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola will be pulling it out when he watches the replay, as he'll see Aleksandar Kolarov could have done more to stop Willian from breaking free.

Instead it's his growing beard that will get attention as the Serb allowed Willian to compete with him in a foot race, which is exactly what the Brazilian wanted. Not only was he fresher, having come on as a substitute, he had the pace to burn past Kolarov.

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It was a similar situation to when Aguero confronted Luiz in the first half. Rather than allowing the City man to get through, Luiz did what was necessary. He ran the gauntlet, but he won the duel. Kolarov allowed Willian to do the opposite and paid the price. 

Whereas Luiz did enough to block Aguero's run, Kolarov opened the door for Willian despite checking his shoulder for the danger. He should've attempted to force him wider by covering the space Willian was beginning to run into. He didn't. Kolarov was naive.

The dark arts: They are what can win teams matches, and Luiz has long shown himself to be the master of them. As recently as the 2-0 win against Southampton in October, he was dabbling in them. Chelsea were already ahead after Hazard's early finish, and after the interval, Saints were attempting to pick up the pace and ruffle Chelsea.

Luiz's response was to slow down the game as often as possible, thus wrestling control back into Chelsea's favour. When he found himself under pressure from Nathan Redmond, Luiz played the situation perfectly. Checking his shoulder, he waited for Redmond to dive in before inviting the contact to take a tumble.

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Chelsea won a free-kick, kept possession and stopped Southampton in their tracks. It was one moment in isolation, but combine it with the rest throughout the game and Luiz's effectiveness was a big part of an impressive victory.

That's not cheating. It's being clever.

Luiz feeds on the naivety of those around him, spotting the weakness to make it a considerable benefit. In October, it was Redmond's hunger for possession that Luiz exploited. On Saturday, it was a weak referee.

He will be criticised for it, of course. Luiz is operating on the fringes. He's in the shadows, blurring the lines between what is right and wrong. He's championing a side of the game that is frowned upon, yet the end result is that it's helping Chelsea win football matches. The Blues are four points clear of Manchester City, and regardless of how Liverpool perform over the weekend, they will be top for another week.

Luiz is affecting games in a way that contributes positively. The impression was that his Stamford Bridge return was a mistake by Conte, although here he is, one of the club's most crucial figures in this new system that has brought eight straight league wins.

Luiz's gamesmanship is demonstrating a maturity we never expected from him. It's showing that he understands the game better and is capable of winning his personal battles.

That's never been the case. Too often, strikers have exposed him to the detriment of Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain. Now he's changed the conversation.

Garry Hayes is Bleacher Report's lead Chelsea correspondent. Follow him on Twitter @garryhayes.