Wrighty’s big-match verdict - Chelsea 2 Man City 1
Q: What does this result mean for Man City?
THIS loss is a reminder of how hard it is to win a title.
Chelsea know this fact — and so do Manchester United and Arsenal.
But City remain in unchartered territory and defeat in West London will be an intriguing test of their mettle. This is where the pressure starts. Big time.\Before the game, I did not see City losing but now they are just two points ahead of United at the top and Alex Ferguson will be rubbing his hands with glee.
City now play at home to Arsenal which is a massive, massive game. The way the Gunners are playing right now, I can see them winning at the Etihad and that will really throw things wide open.
I felt a bit sorry for City, though, as the decisions did not go their way last night. They should have been given a penalty when leading — and it all went against them.
But as we know, you do not win the Premier League just by having the best players. You need a bit more than that and City now have to answer some questions.
Q: Can Chelsea still win the title from here?
THEY still have one hell of a job on their hands.
But at least this win gives them some belief and now I'd like to see everyone at the club — from AVB to the experienced players — pulling in the same direction. That is the only way they can continue to close the gap on City.
If Chelsea are a club which is split or has cliques, they do not have a chance. But becoming the first team to beat City in the Premier League this season will have given them a massive boost.
Chelsea's next two away games are at Wigan and Spurs.
They will be tricky in different ways but I think Villas-Boas will fancy his chances of delivering six points. The match at White Hart Lane in nine days will be absolutely fascinating.
One win does not make everything fine at Chelsea but the squad is experienced enough to know what it takes to win the title.
Whether they will manage to do so remains to be seen.
Q: Who was your star player and why?
FOR ME, Ramires. He was athletic and did well, causing City problems.
He also broke up a few City attacks when they moved forward. I also thought Oriol Romeu did well in midfield but Ramires was the pick.
Let's be honest, it's taken him time at Stamford Bridge to really win over the locals. I didn't realise he'd be quite as good as this — certainly not from some of his displays last season.
But he does seem to have so many qualities to his game. He gets forward more than I expected, because I thought he was a player who preferred playing more deeply.
Ramires clearly feels that the new manager of Chelsea has plenty of faith in him. He looks very, very good. And I'm sure we will see some more excellent performances from the guy over the next few weeks.
Q: Is supersub now the role Lamps must play?
HE may be effective in this role because, after all, Frank remains a great player.
However, top players want to play as much as possible, no matter what their age. And I know for a fact that Frank will be no different.
He showed his bottle and class by coming on as a sub and scoring the winner with a confident penalty.
But regardless of leaving Stamford Bridge as the hero — not for the first time in his career — Frank would not have been totally happy last night.
He would have felt he could have made a positive contribution in all 90 minutes for Chelsea. While I cannot see Frank starting in Euro 2012 for England, he will still feel that he can play every game for his country and will be frustrated if he earns a supersub tag for this club over the next few months. He'll be dying to start every game.
