Manchester City 4-0 Chelsea: Riyad Mahrez grabs brace as City demolish Blues in FA Cup third round

Manchester City will host Arsenal or Oxford in the FA Cup fourth round after dismantling Chelsea 4-0 on Sunday. Riyad Mahrez, Julian Alvarez and Phil Foden all struck in an electric 15-minute burst in the first half as City headed into the break three goals to the good. The pace inevitably slowed in the second half but Mahrez added further gloss to the scoreline with a late penalty.

Riyad Mahrez scored twice as Manchester City stormed into the fourth round of the FA Cup with a thumping 4-0 victory over Chelsea at Etihad Stadium.

The visiting players warmed up in No. 9 shirts in tribute to the late, great Gianluca Vialli ahead of kick off but could not muster a performance to match the gesture.

Pep Guardiola’s home team dominated from the off and deservedly took the lead on 23 minutes when Mahrez curled home a majestic 25-yard free kick.

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Julian Alvarez then made it two from the penalty spot on the half hour mark after VAR had intervened to alert the referee to a handball by Kai Havertz.

Chelsea’s shoulders clearly slumped after that and City all-but wrapped up victory eight minutes later when Phil Foden finished off a lovely, well-worked move.

Graham Potter brought on new signing David Datro Fofana for his debut at the break and tinkered with his system but it did little to change the flow of the game as the hosts continued to dictate the tempo despite easing back into ‘game-management’ mode.

The Citizens then put the icing on the cake five minutes from time when Mahrez netted his second goal of the game from the spot to set up a fourth round tie at home to Oxford or Arsenal.

Next up, City visit Southampton in the EFL Cup on Wednesday before taking on neighbours Man United at Old Trafford in the Premier League on Saturday. Chelsea have a trip to Fulham in the league on Thursday.

Image credit: Getty Images

Talking point - City swagger as alarm bells ring for Chelsea

This was billed as arguably the tie of the round but it was barely a contest. City produced some bewitching football in the first half and were far too good for Chelsea even when they eased back into second gear for the second period.

Potter had come out fighting ahead of the match stating that some of the media’s questions were "stupid", but he’ll undoubtedly receive more of the same that you could also describe as uncomfortable in the aftermath of a sixth defeat in their last nine matches in all competitions.

The vast injury list has clearly hampered his first months at the helm but the stats don’t lie and Chelsea fans have grown used to seeing better than one win in their last eight Premier League matches and 10th spot in the table. This defeat also means Chelsea bow out at the third round stage of the FA Cup for the first time since 1997-98.

The murmurs of unrest are already growing and Potter needs wins quick to earn the stability and time he craves and has supposedly been promised.

Player of the match - Riyad Mahrez (Man City)

Opened the scoring with a sublime free kick, had a hand in the third goal and then sealed progress from the spot. Caused continual problems on the right and was at the heart of most of City’s best moments.

Player Ratings

MAN CITY: Ortega 7, Walker 8, Akanji 7, Laporte 7, Gomez 7, Rodri 7, Bernardo Silva 7, Palmer 7, Mahrez 9, Alvarez 8, Foden 8. Subs: Phillips 6, Cancelo 6, Lewis n/a.

CHELSEA: Kepa 6, Chalobah 6, Humphreys 6, Koulibaly 6, Hall 6, Kovacic 6, Jorginho 6, Gallagher 6, Ziyech 6, Havertz 5, Mount 5. Subs: Datro Fofana 6, Zakaria 6, Azpilicueta 6, Hutchinson 6, Chukwuemeka 6.

Matchcast: Full match stats and commentary

Match Highlights

19’ MAN CITY CHANCE! Palmer races on to a ball over the top. He's clear on the left side of the area but can't squeeze his shot in at the near post.

23’ GOAL! – Man City 1-0 Chelsea (Mahrez). Mahrez steps up and curls a stunning 25-yard free kick into the top corner.

30’ GOAL! – Man City 2-0 Chelsea (Alvarez). Alvarez just about squeezes his penalty underneath the dive of Kepa to double City's lead. The spot kick was awarded after VAR intervened following a hand ball by Havertz.

38’ GOAL! – Man City 3-0 Chelsea (Foden). That will surely be that. Foden steers Walker's cut back into the net after a wonderfully flowing move from the home team.

85’ GOAL! – Man City 4-0 Chelsea (Mahrez). Mahrez grabs his second of the match as he fires his spot kick high into the net. The penalty was awarded after Koulibaly tripped Foden in the area.

Key Stats

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