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LIVE BLOG
FULL TIME: Well, that wasn’t close.
90+4min: Caballero again excellent, but the rebound falls to Silva. Rüdiger saves on the line for a corner. Claudio Gomes on for Stones for City.
90+3min: Caballero makes another excellent save on Diaz to keep it 2-0.
89min: Chelsea denied a consolation as Bravo gets there just before Abraham. Good cross by Barkley. Moses there to follow-up but the ball’s cleared for a corner. Willian takes the corner but Rüdiger doesn’t make good/strong contact.
87min: Laporte picks up a knock for City; Otamendi replaces him.
84min: David Luiz exposed not for the first time, but Caballero saves from Gabriel Jesus. Moses tries to break the other way but Kompany tackles well. Then Abraham has a half-chance, but is crowded out.
83min: Caballero saves well from Diaz who’s never challenged.
79min: Drinkwater pirouettes out of trouble, finds Abraham through the middle, his layoff for Barkley is excellent and the pass for a streaking Willian is on ... but Barkley’s touch is poor and the chance is gone. Agüero fires into the side netting at the other end, before he’s replaced by Kompany. Meanwhile, Moses comes on for Pedro.
75min: City substitution: Brahim Diaz for fellow youngster Phil Foden.
72min: Caballero denies Agüero his hat-trick with an excellent save at the far post after a short corner.
70min: Stones gives the ball away, but Willian shows plenty of rust with his attempt to create a chance for himself.
69min: Second City substitution as Mahrez makes way for Gabriel Jesus. Drink break! Abraham replaces Morata during that break.
65min: Chelsea threatening to fall apart, a la so many times last season, but a couple Mahrez offsides and a shot wide saves the day.
58min: Agüero doubles City’s lead, finishing off a 5-v-4 counter after Chelsea had pushed forward. Chelsea respond with a double substitution, Willian for Hudson-Odoi and Drinkwater for Fàbregas.
54min: Chelsea win a corner off a rare foray forward by Azpilicueta. Bravo punches away from above Morata’s head.
52min: Another Agüero run behind the defenders creates a chance, but Foden’s shot is saved.
50min: Somehow Agüero failes to score after running off the back of David Luiz and going 1-v-1 with Caballero. The goalkeeper does really well to delay the shot, which eventually goes into the side netting.
48min: A Fàbregas through ball finds Morata, but Stones is quicker and Bravo clears. Pedro then goes on a run, but only into a cul-de-sac.
47min: Pedro & Jorginho contrive to give the ball away and Agüero goes 1-v-1 with David Luiz. The defender does well enough to channel him to one side, the shot is tame and wide.
46min: No changes for Chelsea. City bring on Gündogan for Sané; he drops to midfield, Bernardo Silva goes into the attack. Chelsea create the first half-opportunity, but Pedro’s cross is blocked.
HALF-TIME: City the better side, certainly early on. Chelsea have slowly grown into the match and have shown some endeavor, especially through Hudson-Odoi, but the rest of the team isn’t clicking too well on or off the ball.
45+2min: HALF-TIME
45+1min: A nothing ball forward from Alonso bounces over Bravo’s head, but he gets there just before Morata to keep it 1-0 at the half.
@C1audioBravo pic.twitter.com/4rLWSguDYv
— The Emirates FA Cup (@EmiratesFACup) August 5, 2018
45min: Pedro & CHO switch wings for the first time.
43min: Jorginho wins the ball, and Hudson-Odoi is off and running, finds Morata in the middle but City flood back and the danger is gone. At the other end, Mahrez toys with Alonso, but the Chelsea man has the last laugh as Mahrez’s weak-footed shot is ... weak.
39min: Alonso wins the ball, Morata finds Pedro on the wing but his return ball is cut out.
38min: Hudson-Odoi toys with Walker, then lays it back to Alonso. His cross is a bit too deep and Bravo collects.
37min: Nice play by Barkley on the right touchline, but Pedro’s pass finds nobody.
36min: Alonso goes on a journey but loses the ball. City break the other way and easily run through the static/slow Chelsea midfield. A poor touch from Mahrez and David Luiz clears.
34min: Chelsea’s most dangerous moment yet, building from the back through the middle and Hudson-Odoi finding himself in acres of space thanks to an excellent Morata run. CHO’s shot is straight at Bravo however; he fumbles but no one’s following.
31min: Chelsea force a turnover and Hudson-Odoi gets on the ball, but like Morata’s shot a few minutes earlier, it doesn’t quite have the requisite curl to find the top corner.
27min: Drink break! It is just a friendly.
25min: Morata wins the ball, plays a 1-2, beats one man but his shot doesn’t have the right spin and flies high and wide.
23min: Jorginho gives the ball away (!) but Caballero is alert and comes off his line excellently as City had a 4-on-2 but Sané’s touch was just a little long and gave the Chelsea goalkeeper an opportunity to cleanly collect and avert the danger.
17min: A Fàbregas free kick is cut out by Bravo. Agüero has another shot. Chelsea second best, by a fair margin.
14min: City easily knife through midfield, with Foden carrying the ball 30 yards and finding Agüero with a square ball, completely unmarked just outside the area. Agüero picks his spot and easily scores. Midfield nowhere to be found, defenders backing off. 1-0.
11min: Agüero shapes a shot well wide. At the other end, Pedro is caught offside to end Chelsea’s brief possession.
8min: Chelsea finally get a few touches, with Hudson-Odoi threatening for a second. Then it’s back with City.
5min: Well, it’s all Manchester City so far, with Azpilicueta getting run ragged on the right flank
KICK-OFF: And we’re underway in the Wembley sunshine
Welcome to match zero, the unofficial start of the new season. Of course, the Championship and lower leagues are already under way (congrats to Frank Lampard on his maiden win in his very first attempt), but the Premier League only starts next weekend. This weekend is only the Charity Shield or Community Shield or whatever you want to call it.
It doesn’t really count as a trophy, but it does matter a little bit if you win it. If you lose, it doesn’t matter. So it’s a no-risk, all-upside situation. Might as well get the Sarri-ball era off to a winning start, no?
Here we go.
Chelsea starting lineup (4-3-3):
Caballero | Alonso, David Luiz, Rüdiger, Azpilicueta (c) | Fàbregas, Jorginho, Barkley | Hudson-Odoi, Morata, Pedro
Substitutes from: Bułka, Christensen, Zappacosta, Drinkwater, Moses, Willian, Abraham
So the same starting lineup as against Arsenal midweek, just as Sarri had said immediately after that game. Fàbregas recovers in time to start; Willian makes the bench over Loftus-Cheek.
Manchester City starting lineup (4-3-3):
Bravo | Mendy, Laporte, Stones, Walker | Foden, Fernandinho (c), B.Silva | Sané, Agüero, Mahrez
Substitutes from: Ederson, Kompany, Gundogan, Otamendi, Jesus, Diaz, Gomes
Date / Time: Sunday, August 5, 2018, 15:00 BST; 10am EDT; 7:30pm IST
Venue: Wembley Stadium, London, England
Referee: Jonathan Moss
On TV: BT Sport 1 (UK); none (USA); Sony Ten 2 (India); elsewhere
Streaming online: BT Sport Live (UK); ESPN+ (USA); Sony LIV (India)
No links to illegal streams. And be excellent to each other.
COME ON, CHELSEA!