Niall Quinn: Chelsea have sent out a message with Swansea romp... over to you Manchester City
Sunday 18 January 2015 14:39, UK
Niall Quinn insists Chelsea have sent out a strong message to Manchester City ahead of Super Sunday after hammering Swansea 5-0.
Jose Mourinho’s side pulled five points clear in the title race but City can reduce the deficit with a positive result against Arsenal.
Diego Costa and Oscar each scored twice as a first-half onslaught from Chelsea overwhelmed Garry Monk’s men and Andre Schurrle added a fifth in the closing stages.
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The visitors had 21 shots at the Swansea goal and were in complete control of proceedings from the first whistle.
The score didn’t even reflect the strength of the performance Chelsea had. I know it sounds awful for Swansea, but it could have been a lot worse.
“The first 45 minutes were a joy to watch,” Quinn said on Match Choice.
“This particular fixture didn’t stand out for me over the weekend but what Chelsea have done is make it stand out with the performance. They’ve sent out a strong message.
“Everybody will look at that today and say ‘wow, what a way to play’. Mourinho spoke about the way they recovered the ball brilliantly. He didn’t talk about all the great things they did on the ball. He knows they are doing the other side of their game so well.
“Defensively it was the complete performance. They made sure they retained the ball and snuffed Swansea out. Offensively, it was a joy to watch and a sent out a big, big message to the rest of the Premier League.
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“The score didn’t even reflect the strength of the performance Chelsea had. I know it sounds awful for Swansea, but it could have been a lot worse.”
It’s now over to Man City on Super Sunday against Arsenal, where Thierry Henry is making his punditry debut for Sky Sports.
Quinn thinks the pressure is very much on Manuel Pellegrini’s men to take all three points off the Gunners, who have a very poor record on the road against fellow top-four contenders.
“If Man City don’t beat Arsenal, it doubles the result and performance Chelsea showed against Swansea,” Quinn said.
“They're really stamping their authority on the Premier League title race this year. Man City have got to win on Sunday.
“OK, if they draw the gap will go to four points but it will be a huge psychological advantage after what’s happened this weekend. This weekend very much belongs to Chelsea at this minute.”
