Chelsea vs. Manchester City: Winners and Losers from Premier League Game
Chelsea maintained their five-point lead atop the Premier League after holding champions Manchester City to a draw on Saturday.
Loic Remy opened the scoring for the hosts against the run of play in the 41st minute, but shortly before the half-time whistle, David Silva restored level terms going into the break.
City were generally the better side after the restart but struggled to create clear-cut chances, while the Blues didn't place a single shot on target after taking the lead.
Overall, there were several performances that caught the eye at Stamford Bridge, as well as one or two that were rather less impressive.
Following are the individual winners and losers from the match.
Winner: Nemanja Matic, Who Shone in a Short-Staffed Chelsea Midfield
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The absence of Cesc Fabregas through injury meant that Chelsea would rely heavily on Nemanja Matic against Manchester City, and the midfielder didn't let them down.
From the outset, he showed a willingness to both throw himself into a challenge and embark on those dribbles that remain an underappreciated part of his game. According to WhoScored, he contributed eight tackles to the cause on Saturday.
"Matic. Destroyer supreme," commented talkSPORT's Stan Collymore via Twitter.
Loser: Sergio Aguero, Whose Dry Spell Continues
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Sergio Aguero hasn't scored since the beginning of December, and his dry spell continued at Stamford Bridge.
Although his shot set up David Silva to score on a redirection, he missed a glorious chance just after the half-hour mark that might have given his side the lead.
"What a pass that was from Kompany," exclaimed Stuart Brennan of the Manchester Evening News on Twitter. "Aguero showing he is still not 100 percent, or he would have buried it."
Winner: David Silva, Who Scored City's Goal
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David Silva put in a solid shift on both sides of the ball, Saturday.
Defensively, he was typically willing to track back and lend a hand in his own half of the pitch, and in attack, he caused plenty of problems with his dribbling and quick passing.
Shortly before the break, he cancelled out Loic Remy's opener when he redirected a Sergio Aguero shot past Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.
"Silva is the first visiting player to score a PL goal at Stamford Bridge since Charlie Austin on Nov 1," revealed Matt Barlow of the Daily Mail.
Winner: Fernandinho, Who Played One of His Best Games of the Season
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Fernandinho was superb after arriving at Manchester City ahead of last season, but his form seemed to take a dip through the first half of the current campaign.
On Saturday, however, the Brazil international was back to his best—cleanly winning tackles and smartly playing himself into useful space.
In the 17th minute, he won the ball off Ramires in front of City goalkeeper Joe Hart, and in the 31st, he did ever so well to sneak it off Nemanja Matic.
"Fernandinho having a great game so far—fast, sharp, excellent tackles. Yaya who?" remarked the Manchester Evening News' Stuart Brennan.
The South American must now maintain this level of form for the remainder of the season to ensure City's Premier League defence is not derailed.
Loser: Jose Mourinho, Who Had Plenty of Antics and Ignored the Media
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As per Sam Borden of The New York Times, Jose Mourinho revealed pre-match that he wouldn't be talking to the media at the final whistle.
This following comments earlier this month in which the Chelsea manager claimed "every decision" was "going against" his side, according to ESPN FC.
Mourinho did, however, make himself the centre of attention on Saturday by giving fourth official Jonathan Moss a constant earful and mimicking referee Mark Clattenburg's wall measurements.
"Jose, never one to lack complaints, now moaning to fourth official about the length of Mark Clattenburg's stride when measuring walls," tweeted Ed Malyon of the Daily Mirror.
Winner: Kurt Zouma, Who Impressed Once Again in the Chelsea Defense
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Kurt Zouma once again displaced Gary Cahill in the centre of Chelsea's defense on Saturday.
Blues boss Jose Mourinho, no doubt, was keen to deploy the 20-year-old against the speed of both Sergio Aguero and David Silva.
It proved the correct decision.
In the 18th minute, Zouma made a vital tackle on Aguero that prevented a shot from in close, and in the first minute of second-half stoppage time, he headed away James Milner's cross before it could reach Edin Dzeko.
