MATCH REPORT AND PLAYER RATINGS - CHELSEA 4-4 MANCHESTER CITY

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In an all time Premier League classic, Chelsea and Manchester City played out a stunning 4-4 draw, in a game which saw former City youngster Cole Palmer score a last minute penalty to bring the score level.

It was a penalty that broke the deadlock in the game, as Erling Haaland sent keeper Robert Sanchez the wrong way from the spot for his 16th goal of the season in the 25th minute of the match.

However, Chelsea hit back with a sucker blow, as Thiago Silva somehow found himself free at the near post from a corner kick to head home his first Premier League goal of the season. Poor defending from City saw club legend Raheem Sterling with a trademark back post tap in to give Chelsea the lead.

Despite encouragement from teammate Nicolas Jackson to celebrate in front of the travelling City fans, Sterling kept his celebrations muted against the club whom he scored 131 goals in all competitions during his 7 year spell at the club.

Just before the half time break, the champions drew level through Manuel Akanji, who scored his third goal in three appearances for the club with a free header inside the penalty area after an excellent cross from Bernardo Silva.

And just after the break, a devastating counter attack involving Phil Foden and Julian Alvarez saw Haaland bag his second of the game by smothering the ball over the line sliding in at the backpost.

But, after a rare period of control for the Blues in the period after half time, Chelsea struck back through Jackson, who pounced on Ederson's parry from Conor Gallagher's long range shot for his 6th goal in the Premier League.

With another late goal from Rodri - a left footed long range effort that deflected off Thiago Silva and past the stranded Sanchez - it appeared that City had gotten away with their defensive mistakes, and would take all three points away from Stamford Bridge.

But up stepped 21 year old Palmer, to beat Ederson with an excellently struck penalty in injury time to snatch the victory away from City, and to get what was probably a deserved point for Chelsea, who attacked fantastically all game.

City, who were missing defenders Nathan Ake and John Stones through injuries, were left with a backline of Kyle Walker, Ruben Dias, Akanji and Josko Gvardiol. This would usually be good enough to keep any attack in world football quiet for the majority of a game, but a combination of brilliant attacking and individual mistakes saw Chelsea get into menacing positions time and time again.

Sterling and Palmer, in particular, had excellent games. Walker, Dias and Gvardiol, on the other hand, made a few costly mistakes that made it easier than it should've been for Chelsea's attackers.

Also, Pep Guardiola's decision to start the explosive yet unpredictable Jeremy Doku over the safer bet in Jack Grealish saw a lack of control in the game for either side. As Rodri observed after the game, a game of transitions suited Chelsea better, as the home atmosphere and their general comfort with this style of match was beneficial for them in matching City at their own game.

With all the individual errors involved, combined with a lack of control in midfield all match, some fine individual performances from Chelsea players and a mixture of injuries and mistakes in the starting XI, it was very impressive that City were able to not just come away with a point, but that they were ahead for such a long time in the game.

Heading into the international break, injuries are once again the topic for conversation for City, who's choice to not operate with a larger squad may come back to haunt them.

Ake, Ederson and Mateo Kovacic have all withdrawn from their national team squads due to injury, as they join John Stones, Sergio Gomez and Kevin de Bruyne on the sidelines. With big matches against Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa on the horizon, City will be hoping that the injured players recover from their minor issues quickly.

Here are the player ratings for the thriller at Stamford Bridge:

Ederson - 6.5/10 - Made a few very good saves, including one from Palmer after he drove past City's backline. However, he should've done better for Jackson's goal, and his distribution was slightly more sloppy than usual due to Chelsea's effective press.

Walker - 6/10 - A very inconsistent performance by Walker, who had moments of real quality mixed with moments of sheer stupidity. Overall, Sterling got the better of him across the full ninety minutes, and the 33 year old will be disappointed with his overall performance.

Dias - 5/10 - In what was probably his worst performance to date for the Blues, Dias will be looking to put that one behind him quickly. The 26 year old did have a solid first half, bar a mistake for the second goal, but his second half was riddled with errors. He had a few moments of quality, but gave the penalty away for the fourth goal, and shouldn't have gone to ground unnecessarily for the third goal. He's still a world class defender however, and those blaming the entire result on him are quite frankly being ridiculous.

Akanji - 8/10 - Had a good overall game, and was by far City's best defender. Took his goal well, and even offered an attacking threat when pushing into midfield in Stones-esque fashion.

Gvardiol - 6/10 - Had a good overall game, and had a difficult job up against Palmer and James down Chelsea's right hand side. He held his own, but made an absolute howler for Chelsea's second goal, which could've easily been avoided.

Rodri - 7/10 - Was often left isolated in trying to stop Chelsea counter attacks, which meant his performance looked worse than it actually was. His goal, whilst taking a lucky deflection, was a well hit effort, and he once again showed he has the clutch ability to stand up for City in the big moments.

Alvarez - 6.5/10 - Started the match very badly, as he looked out of place in the midfield, and struggled more than usual with his ball retention and overall midfield game (which, understandably, is already inferior to Rodri and Bernardo's.) In the second half, he improved, and it was his dangerous ball across goal that set up Haaland for City's third goal.

Bernardo - 6.5/10 - Playing in a more advanced role than usual, almost as an extra number 10 to support Alvarez rather than as an extra number 6 to support Rodri, Bernardo didn't offer as much as usual in terms of frequent touches of the ball. However, he had a few silky touches, and his pinpoint cross for Akanji's goal left the Swiss international with a simple finish.

Foden - 8.5/10 - The performances of Sterling and Palmer completely overshadowed the performance of the man who took their minutes in the biggest games. Foden was incredible, and was City's brightest creative spark. He nearly got one of the best assists in Premier League history, after he wriggled past 3 Chelsea defenders and crossed with his right foot to the back post, only for the angle to be too tight for Haaland to convert.

Haaland - 8.5/10 - Led the line fantastically, and has appeared to catch the goal scoring bug again with nine goals in his last six games in all competitions. Stylistically, no-one in the City squad comes anywhere close to him, which makes him one of City's most important players.

Doku - 6/10 - Very quiet down the left, as Chelsea chose to double up on him, thus branding him largely ineffective. He did do very well, however, to win the corner in the build up to Akanji's goal.

Substitutes:

Grealish - 7/10 - Helped in controlling what was a chaotic and fast flowing game. Kept the ball remarkably under pressure on a few occasions, and proved exactly why he should have started the game.

Kovacic - 7.5./10 - I think Kovacic was remarkable from the bench, and like Grealish, he helped City control the game with his ball carrying, press resistance and patience in possession. The way some City fans speak about the Croatian international and 4 times Champions League winner like he's out of his depth and putting in poor performances is so remarkably out of touch that it makes you question whether they're watching the same game as the rest of us.