Exactly 12 months ago today, the 2023/24 Premier League’s game of the season took place. The 4-4 thriller hosted at Stamford Bridge was voted as the best game of the season.
Manchester City, who went on to retain the Premier League title were expected to dominate a struggling Chelsea team. However, from the moment the whistle was blown, it was clear that wouldn’t be the case.
A Fixture Full of Drama
It was a fixture that had it all. Conceded penalties, late goals, almost instant equalisers and 9 yellow cards. Not to mention, two players scored against their former club, statements loud as ever.
The game saw early chances from Chelsea’s Cole Palmer and Manchester City’s Joško Gvardiol, but the first goal would come from none other than City’s Erling Haaland. Chelsea conceded the penalty after Marc Cucurella and Haaland Tussled for the ball in the penalty area.
But less than five minutes later, Chelsea responded with a Thiago Silva header. The Chelsea legend from Brazil saw his attempt go into the bottom left corner of the net, and propel Chelsea back into the game.
Chelsea further claimed their stake when Palmer played the ball to Reece James who in turn passed it to the finisher, Raheem Sterling. And with that, Chelsea’s second goal came from the product of two former Manchester City players, alongside Cobham’s Reece James.
A Manuel Akanji header followed a few minutes later, with the game going into half-time with both teams levelled.
Late Drama and Resilience
Just two minutes after the game resumed, Haaland stumbled into the goal with the ball, giving his team an early advantage. It took the hosts 20 minutes to equalise, with Nicolas Jackson taking advantage of a loose ball after an Ederson save.
In the 87th minute, it looked like Manchester City had won it, as Rodri stunned the hosts with his late goal. However, as the previous 86 minutes of the game had shown us, ‘it’s not over until it’s over’.
During extra time, Armando Broja drew a foul in the penalty area. It was at that moment that Peter Drury’s words – “City’s boy is now Chelsea’s man” – rang through our ears as Cole Palmer converted the penalty. With that very late penalty, Palmer denied his boyhood club the win.
The final result, 4-4.
The Aftermath and Significance
A game of high quality, both teams left it all out there. There was no winner to be found that day. However considering Chelsea’s struggles last season, coming out on even points against the best team in the league was a win in its own way.
Despite Manchester City taking the lead on three separate occasions, Chelsea never allowed them to be comfortable. What may have been a positive result for Chelsea must have been a disappointing one for Manchester City. The reigning champions thought they had three points on multiple occasions throughout the game, but a last-minute blunder threw it all away.
The Royal Blues went toe-to-toe with Pep Guardiola’s super team. It was a free-flowing fixture with 8 brilliant goals entrancing Stamford Bridge and the world of football alike.