It's not been a great game at the Etihad Stadium, as neither side has played particularly well. Manchester City have seen far more of the ball, but their finishing has been astonishingly profligate despite some catastrophic defending from Chelsea.
Manchester City vs. Chelsea: Half-time score 0-0, City dominant but wasteful
In truth, both teams have given a glimpse of why they're so far off the pace in the league this season, although City's all-round play was superior. Matija Nastasic almost put them in the lead early from a corner, but a fine stop from Petr Cech kept the scores level. Sergio Aguero also had a fine opportunity to score after Ashley Cole gave the ball away with Chelsea's defence all over the place, but the Argentinian took too long, and after failing to round Cech the chance was gone.
Pablo Zabaleta had the opportunity to score late in the half as a bouncing ball landed outside the area nicely for him, but he could only crash his shot into Gary Cahill's head. Chelsea enjoyed a few spells of possession outside the City area, but seemed only capable of winning possession through being fouled, and were reduced at one point to having Frank Lampard try to score from a free-kick 40 yards out.
Something’s got to give in the second half, but at this point it’s difficult to see what.
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