Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP)

Three weeks before their Champions League final, Chelsea temporarily deprived Manchester City of a seventh title in the English league on Saturday by winning at the Etihad Stadium 2-1.

As in the semi-final of the Cup in mid April (1-0), Thomas Tuchel and his family again brought down City and took a little psychological ascendancy before the C1 final on May 29 in Istanbul.

A success which also allows Chelsea to seize third place in the championship at the expense of Leicester.

Pep Guardiola's team, which has a 13-point lead at the top of the standings, will now watch for a misstep from its runner-up and great rival Manchester United, which begins a series of three matches this week with a trip to Aston Villa on Sunday .

The Citizens do not play them again until Friday against Newcastle.

Four days after having dismissed Paris SG in the semi-final, it is a very reshaped City team, with nothing less than 9 changes, which presented itself at the Etihad Stadium against its future opponent in the final of the League champions.

Only goalkeeper Ederson and defender Ruben Dias escaped the rotation set up by Guardiola.

Thomas Tuchel had made five changes from the victorious semi-final against Real Madrid.

After a goal denied to Chelsea for an offside from Timo Werner (32nd), the match really got excited just before the break with the opener from Raheem Sterling who took advantage of a missed intervention by Andreas Christensen (1-0, 44th).

In the process, City got a penalty.

But Sergio Agüero, the man who scored the title goal for the Sky Blues in 2012, completely missed his Panenka against Edouard Mendy.

As in the semi-final of the Cup won by Chelsea on April 17, Hakim Ziyech came to thwart the Mancunian projects.

The Moroccan equalized thanks to a half-volley (1-1, 63rd).

Werner believed to give the advantage to the Blues, but was once again signaled offside (79th), just like Callum Hudson-Odoi (81st).

It was finally Marcos Alonso, served by Werner, who offered the victory on the wire to the Blues (90 + 2).

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