Man City Brush Aside Palace, Keep Pressure on Chelsea as Festive Period Begins

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND—In his press conference on Friday afternoon, Manuel Pellegrini admitted his Manchester City side would have to find a different approach to goal when they took on Crystal Palace at the Etihad on Saturday afternoon.

Without a recognised senior striker after injuries to Sergio Aguero, Edin Dzeko and Stevan Jovetic, and with young Spanish star Jose Angel Pozo ill, City had to go in search of victory with James Milner operating as a lone frontman.

City struggled to find a way through the Palace defence in the first half, but the goals came eventually, with David Silva scoring two—his first home league goals in a year—and Yaya Toure capping a fine performance by blasting in the third. One more would have seen City move to the top of the Premier League table, until Monday, at least, but a 3-0 win represents an excellent result given the circumstances.

It’s a result that puts huge pressure on Chelsea ahead of their match with Stoke City at the Britannia on Monday night. Having been eight points ahead at one stage this season, their lead has evaporated quickly, and what the psychological effects of that will be remains to be seen.

Whats is clear, though, is that City are hitting real form. That’s eight wins in succession across all competitions—one short of a record-equalling nine straight victories—and with some winnable fixtures over the Christmas period, their position near the top of the table should be strengthened in the coming weeks.

Alex Livesey/Getty Images

Pellegrini has consistently said that the title is never won at this stage of the season, but it can almost certainly be lost. Had City’s patchy form continued, it’s likely they would have found themselves slipping further behind Jose Mourinho’s side, an unenviable position for any side with title ambitions.

Silva’s two goals capped a wonderful display that once again underlined his influence on this City side. Palace manager Neil Warnock said he was “head and shoulders” above everyone else on the pitch and it was difficult to argue after a masterclass in pass-and-move football topped off by two excellent goals. City are a far better side with their Spanish playmaker pulling the strings.

And Toure, too, impressed again, with a performance full of running, tackling, exceptional passing and a thunderous left-foot finish to end a superb counter-attacking goal for City’s third.

After a difficult start to the campaign on the back of a disrupted preseason, Toure, it seems, is back to his best, and City know their title chances increase significantly with him in full flow.

Milner’s tireless running in an unfamiliar role also caught the eye—and he now needs only to play as a centre-back and goalkeeper for a clean sweep of positions he's operated in this season—and Samir Nasri gave his latest world-class display. The Frenchman has stepped up in recent weeks, when some of City’s other biggest stars have been absent, and provided them with a mix of creativity and control, with his famed touch and ability to beat players a significant threat to the Palace rearguard throughout the match.

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Great win today to celebrate the Birthday of the big man #MartinDemichelis!!! pic.twitter.com/n0kEy5DuBB

— Pablo Zabaleta (@pablo_zabaleta) December 20, 2014"

Afterwards, Pellegrini said he felt sure his side would find the breakthrough, despite a difficult opening 45 minutes, and praised the form of his key midfielders.

“I was always confident because I think in the first half we played very well also,” he said.

“We had the patience to try to create the space. We did not allow them to have not one counter attack. I was absolutely sure we were going to score in the end.

“Yaya was very criticised at the beginning of the season but it was not only Yaya was not in his best performance. I said in that moment, when our midfielder—Yaya, Fernandinho, Nasri, Silva—return to their normal performance, the team will play again the way we normally do.

“I think that all of them this moment are in a very good moment, especially Fernandinho, Yaya and Nasri who are playing regularly, and David is returning from a long injury with his knee the way he knows how to play.”

Alex Livesey/Getty Images

Much like last season, City have found themselves in fine form at a crucial juncture of the campaign. Chelsea, who were left largely unchallenged during the opening weeks of the season, are now under severe pressure. Their trip to Stoke on Monday all of a sudden has a different complexion after City’s striker-less win over a Palace side who now sit just one point above the relegation zone. 

Rob Pollard is Bleacher Report's lead Manchester City correspondent and will be following the club from a Manchester base throughout the 2014-15 season. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow him on Twitter: @RobPollard.