Find out everything you need to know ahead of City's first Premier League home fixture of 2026 against Chelsea.

Key Highlights

• No midfielder in Europe’s top five leagues has made more interceptions (32) this season. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe 23-year-old Ecuador international dominates defensively and has been pivotal in midfield.
• Last season he was voted both the players’ player and fans’ player of the season at Chelsea. Joao Pedro is a versatile forward and Chelsea’s top goalscorer (six), with three of the London side’s goals so far in 2025/26 created by Pedro’s head. The former Brighton star stands at 6ft tall and boasts a tremendous leap, so City’s defence will have to keep a close eye on him. The Brazilian also became vital to Chelsea’s attack, as both a creator and goalscorer, while star forward and former City academy product Cole Palmer was out injured. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementMarc Cucurella has played the most minutes of any Chelsea defender in all competitions this season, and is second only to Enzo Fernandez overall. The Catalonian is a box threat, wing-back, even box-to-box midfielder, and is as important to Chelsea in possession as out of possession. Previous meetingWe last faced Chelsea in January as we played out a 3-1 victory in front of the City fans at the Etihad Stadium. The visitors took the lead inside three minutes through Noni Madueke. But, second half strikes from Erling Haaland and Phil Foden saw City ahead and fired us to fourth in the Premier League table. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementLast time outWe travelled to the Stadium of Light on New Year’s Day and played out an end-to-end, high-intensity 0-0 draw with the Black Cats. It was easy to see why Sunderland were yet to be defeated on home soil.
• The hosts were organised, compact when defending and quick on the break. Skipper Bernardo Silva thought he’d provided City with an early lead, tapping home Erling Haaland’s header from a well-worked corner on five minutes.
• But, the Portuguese was narrowly offside. Rodri and Jeremy Doku made their returns from injury in the second half as City pushed for a decisive goal.
• However, we were unable to break through Sunderland’s defence as we extend our unbeaten run in the Premier League to seven and sit four points behind leaders Arsenal. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementSIGN IN FOR FREE ACCESS Sign in to watch Don’t have an account?