Four surprise Chelsea players named in combined XI with Man City
As Manchester City prepare for what could ultimately be one last title defence this season when they travel to Stamford Bridge, anything but a win would hand Liverpool their first ever Premier League trophy.
It's an inevitability, of course, that the Reds will dethrone City, but the notion that Pep Guardiola's side may take the restart lightly given their circumstances has been well and truly put to bed by 3-0 and 5-0 wins over Arsenal and Burnley respectively.
Hosts Chelsea, meanwhile, have considerably more to play for than just delaying the inevitable, with victories for both Manchester United and Wolves on Wednesday seeing their cushion in fourth reduced to just two points.
Both teams are likely to name strong lineups with all that in mind, with Chelsea able to welcome back Jorginho from suspension, while the visitors handed star man Kevin De Bruyne a rest on Monday. But from the available squads for selection - ruling out the now injured Sergio Aguero - what would be the strongest combined XI from the two teams?
Well, unsurprisingly out Premier League player ratings this season see City come out on top in terms of representatives, though not by a landslide, with seven players to Chelsea's four. In fact, it's perhaps not even the names many might expect from the Blues that make the cut, outnumbering Pep Guardiola's side three to one in defence.
First up is Cesar Azpilicueta (7.14 rating), who picked up where he left off pre-lockdown with an impressive performance against Aston Villa, heralding two assists. The Spaniard comfortably pips Kyle Walker (6.84) to the right-back berth having had a direct hand in more than twice as many goals (seven to three) and averaged more than twice as many tackles per game (2.3 to 1).
On the opposite side of the back four, Azpilicueta's compatriot Marcos Alonso wins out over Benjamin Mendy, and while the former had his critics last season in particular, there's no questioning his impact since returning to the side early this year. In just 12 league appearances he's had a direct hand in six goals to Mendy's two from 15 outings by comparison, leading the City left-back in terms of tackles, interceptions and key passes per game.
Perhaps the biggest surprise inclusion comes at the heart of the backline, however, where Kurt Zouma partners fellow countryman Aymeric Laporte ahead of Fernandinho, or Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen for that matter. The Frenchman makes the cut by a factor of just .01 over Fernandinho (6.89) - the narrowest of margins - having comfortably outscored the Brazilian in tackles, clearances and aerial duels won per game this season.
The final Chelsea inclusion is another one sure to inspire debate, with Willian (7.26) making the grade in the number 10 role ahead of the likes of David and Bernardo Silva (7.18 and 7.08) and Mason Mount (7.00). All three have had a similar involvement when it comes to goals and assists this season, with Willian and Mount managing ten combined apiece to Bernardo Silva's 12 and David's 11. However, the Brazilian leads the way from the quartet in terms of key passes, dribbles and fouls won per game as well as tackles to make the cut.
Elsewhere Mateo Kovacic is edged out by Rodri alongside the outstanding De Bruyne, while Gabriel Jesus makes the most of teammate Aguero's absence to pip Tammy Abraham to the lone striker role.
We're sure you'll have plenty to debate here... Have at it in the comments below!
