Manchester City manager Gareth Taylor has stressed the importance of every Championship game as his side prepare to face Chelsea this Saturday at Stamford Bridge. This summit duel, highly anticipated in England, is part of the 8th day of the Barclays Women’s Super League.
Given the stakes of this confrontation, Taylor insisted that the remaining 15 matches in the league could be decisive in the title race: “I think there will be many more important matches after this one,” said the Citizens coach. “We want to stay consistent, that’s really crucial. The rankings are a bit skewed at the moment because they [Chelsea] have a game in hand, but we just want to make sure we give our best to get the best result.”
As for City’s intentions for the move, Taylor added: “The goal always remains to win. We have a great opportunity to do that, especially with the performances we have already shown this season. That is our main goal for this match.”
Manchester City’s last visit to Chelsea in the league ended the Blues’ impressive 33-match unbeaten run at Kingsmeadow, with a quickfire goal from Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw sealing a 1-0 victory. This time, the setting changes: the match will be played at Stamford Bridge, and Chelsea are now managed by Sonia Bompastor.
Manchester City arrives with impressive momentum, recording 10 consecutive victories in all competitions and remaining undefeated for almost a year. Taylor is confident about his team’s form: “It gives us a lot of confidence”he declared. “We don’t pay much attention to statistics, we move forward game by game. This season, by stringing together 10 consecutive victories, the players have followed the plan really well. Nothing changes for Chelsea: we have a strategy, with and without the ball, we’re going to apply. We know the areas they’re going to try to exploit, and we know where we can make a difference.”
Currently at the top of the standings with 19 points after 7 days, Manchester City is one point ahead of Chelsea. However, the Blues played one match less, which makes this meeting all the more decisive for the rest of the championship.
Agbemégno DAGBOVI
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