Our prediction for this EFL Cup match:
Man City
Match Time & Date:
09/11/2022
21:00
Prediction: 2-1
Chelsea
All eyes will be on Etihad Stadium when Manchester City and Chelsea face each other in the EFL Cup derby. The Citizens somehow survived Fulham at the weekend, with Erling Haaland scoring the late winner from the penalty spot. The Norway superstar, though, is unlikely to be risked in the EFL Cup clash, while Joao Cancelo serves a one-game ban. Talented defender Rico Lewis is pushing for a start, with Riyad Mahrez, Cole Palmer, Sergio Gomez, and Stefan Ortega expecting some minutes as well.
The Blues, on the other hand, aim to recover from the heartbreaking loss to Arsenal, but seeing that Man City are a real force to be reckoned with at home, the visitors are unlikely to upset Pep Guardiola’s troops in their EFL Cup opener. Hakim Ziyech is pushing for a recall, while all Fofana, Kante, Kepa, and Chilwell remain on the sidelines with injuries.
Highlighted Player (Nathan Ake):
Ake is a professional footballer who plays for the Dutch National Team and AFC Bournemouth in the Premier League. The versatile defender who was born on the 18th of February, 1995, started his youth career in 2003 with local club ADO Den Haag. He then moved to Feyenoord in 2007 before joining Chelsea's youth academy four years later.
Ake made his first professional appearance at the age of 17, playing for the Blues in a 0-1 away victory against Norwich on the 26th of December, 2012. Barring a few starts and substitute appearances, Ake spent his next few years at Chelsea mostly in the reserves before being sent out on a one month loan to Reading in 2015. Upon his return, he immediately joined Watford on a season-long loan where his displays earned him the Watford's young player of the season award. Another successful loan spell at Bournemouth succeeded his time at Watford before Chelsea recalled him in January 2017.
At the start of the 17/18 season, the 24-year-old rejoined his current club Bournemouth permanently on a five-year contract worth 20 million pounds. On the International stage, Ake has represented the Netherlands at every youth level and has even captained the under-17 and under-19 sides. He made his first senior appearance on the 31st of May, 2017, featuring in Hollands 2-1 friendly win over Morocco.
Highlighted Team (Chelsea):
Over the years Chelsea have established themselves as one of the dominant forces in the English Premier League. Roberto Di Matteo helped the team win their first ever Champions League trophy (2011/2012), but it has to be noted that they were more than fortunate to beat Bayern Munich in the title game.
Chelsea have been playing at Stamford Bridge since 1876 and they are a real force to be reckoned with at home. The Blues have won seven FA Cups, five League Cups, two UEFA Cup Winners’ Cups and the UEFA Europa League. Rafael Benitez was in charge of the team that faced Benfica in the 2012/2013 Europa League final, with Branislav Ivanovic scoring the winner for the Blues in the title clash.
After lifting the 2014/2015 Premier League trophy, the Blues largely struggled in the next campaign, which saw Jose Mourinho’s second spell with the club come to an end, and Antoine Conte went over to take the reigns for the 2016/2017 season.
Brighton
Southampton
Barcelona
Las Palmas 
Crystal Palace
Newcastle 
Borussia Dortmund 
Bayern Munich 
West Ham
Arsenal
Aston Villa 
