Manchester City needed a talisman to step up at Stamford Bridge and Rayan Cherki delivered in the way Kevin De Bruyne used to

18:48, 12 Apr 2026

Rayan Cherki swung the corner into the box as Manchester City looked for an opener. It was the Frenchman’s shot that had earned the set-piece, but his final delivery was rubbish and went straight to the first man.

City got another go though, because Marc Cucurella’s clearance went straight out for another corner and the Blues could keep their foot on the gas. This was three minutes into the second half and summed up how badly both teams had been misfiring.

Cherki had been poor, yet with City needing inspiration at Stamford Bridge he stepped up and won them the game. His next run at the Chelsea defence came seconds later and earned a corner, and soon after that a clever ball into the box was headed home by Nico O’Reilly.

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From nowhere, City had swarmed Chelsea and – even better – they did not let up. After 10 minutes of dominance to start the second half, another good ball from Cherki found Marc Guehi and the former Chelsea youngster controlled and finished like Erling Haaland to send the away end into rapture.

City found themselves with an unexpected opportunity in West London after Arsenal’s surprise home defeat to Bournemouth on Saturday. Win here and the pressure would firmly be on the league leaders when they travel to the Etihad, with the title race in the hands of both teams waiting to be grabbed.

But this is not the all-conquering City team of old, where experienced pros such as Fernandinho, Kevin De Bruyne and Ilkay Gundogan would steer the side over the line. This is a new team that has been too inconsistent to take advantage of the other opportunities they have had, which is why they are not closer to the top of the table.

A sloppy first half threatened another one of those days, with Rodri setting the tone for an error-strewn opening where neither side looked good enough to win. With the pressure on though, Cherki and City raced through the gears and blew Chelsea away.

By the time Jeremy Doku had stroked home a third after disarray from Robert Sanchez and Moises Caicedo, the delirious City fans were asking Arsenal if they were watching. If Mikel Arteta and his players were, it will have been with gritted teeth and through their fingers; a winning margin of three makes serious inroads on the goal difference front as well, with Arsenal now just leading by three.

This may not be the City team of old but that doesn’t mean they are not dangerous. Needing a big performance to set up a grandstand of a game next week against the Gunners, the Blues delivered it in style.

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