Manchester City vs. Chelsea: Date, Time, Live Stream, TV Info and Preview

When massive games come early in the EPL campaign their significance is often played down. It’s a long season after all and in the Premier League, twists and turns are inevitable. But for Manchester City and Chelsea—who lock horns at the Etihad Stadium in Week 5 of England's top flight—there’s a massive chance to deliver a telling blow and make a real statement.

The duo are rightly regarded as the two sides most likely to sample glory come the end of the campaign, and those tuning in to the match are set for an absorbing 90 minutes that’ll be bristling with quality of the highest order.

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City come into this one on the back of three games without a win and will be desperate to cut the gap down on the league leaders. But Chelsea have started the season in scintillating form, and Jose Mourinho will be looking to make it five wins from five for the campaign at a stadium where his team triumphed last season.

You don’t want to miss this one, and to ensure you don’t here’s all the information you need on where to catch this massive clash via an online stream and on television. Let’s also take a look at the two teams involved and who’s the most likely to emerge victorious.

Date: 21 September 2014

Time: 4 p.m. (BST), 11 a.m. (ET)

Live Stream: Sky Go (UK)

TV Info: Sky Sports 1 HD (UK), NBCSN (US)

For City, avoiding defeat is vital in this fixture. They’re currently five points off Chelsea, who are perched atop the Premier League, and although a victory would by superb for those of a sky blue persuasion, a defeat and a subsequent eight-point gap would be disastrous.

There’s a sense that this City team still have gears to power into. There have been glimpses of their quality shining through in some of their games, but the loss to Stoke City seems to have knocked the stuffing out of Pellegrini’s men. Indeed, a draw or a defeat against the Londoners would be City’s fourth game without a win.

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For the champions, that’s not quite good enough. But there’s no reason why they shouldn’t get the victory against Chelsea. Typically, City are outstanding at home, and with a packed house roaring their heroes on, their players should respond with gumption.

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Chelsea are a streetwise team, though, and in Mourinho they have a manager who knows how to go to the toughest venues and come out the other side unscathed. That was no more evident than in this fixture last season, when the Portuguese was hailed as a tactical master after Branislav Ivanovic’s goal gave the Blues a 1-0 win.

On the cusp of this one, Chelsea look in even better shape. Their summer transfer dealings were outstanding, and in Diego Costa they have a poacher extraordinaire, a player who can conjure a goal of nothing. If truth be told, the Spanish international looks like the missing piece of the jigsaw in what was already an exceptionally strong side.

City have an excellent striker of their own in Sergio Aguero; WhoScored.com (h/t The Independent) compared the two forwards ahead of this clash:

In an intriguing subplot to this match, Chelsea’s all-time record goalscorer Frank Lampard could play against the Blues for the first time since leaving the club, and Mourinho claimed he was surprised to the see the midfielder join up with City, per Miguel Delaney:

It’s difficult to see Chelsea losing any game at the moment. Mourinho’s team have accrued some massive momentum in the early stages of this Premier League campaign, and although they toiled a little against Schalke in the Champions League in midweek, there’s nothing like playing top-quality opposition to sharpen instincts and refocus minds.

City are certainly top-quality opposition, and they have the personnel to match Chelsea. But the spark just doesn’t seem to be there for Pellegrini’s side at the minute ,and subsequently it’s difficult to see them walking away from this one with all three points.

Both sides would probably be happy with a draw, and given how evenly matched they are, notwithstanding with how difficult City are to beat at home and Chelsea’s excellent form, a draw is the most likely outcome here too.

Prediction: Manchester City 2-2 Chelsea