Chelsea capped a difficult week in style as Enzo Fernandez bundled in a last-gasp equaliser to earn a 1-1 draw at Manchester City.
The visitors have been managerless since parting company with Enzo Maresca in a shock move on Thursday, so interim boss Calum McFarlane took charge for Sunday’s clash at the Etihad Stadium.
A trip to Man City was hardly a simple introduction for McFarlane, but Chelsea mounted a fightback as Fernandez turned home at the second attempt in the 94th minute.
The hosts had gone ahead late in the first half through Tijjani Reijnders, but they failed to put the result beyond doubt and were duly punished as they lost further ground in the Premier League title race.
Pep Guardiola’s team moved back into second place above Aston Villa, but they are six points behind Arsenal, while Chelsea are up to fifth place.
How the match unfolded
Phil Foden drilled wide with the first chance of a low-key opening 30 minutes, before Erling Haaland – chasing his 150th Man City goal – then twice went close; first being denied by Chelsea goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen, and then the woodwork.
Man City’s pressure told in the 42nd minute, though. A ball towards Haaland was cut out but only cleared into the path of Reijnders, who got the better of Benoit Badiashile before rifling a left-footed finish into the roof of the net.
Andrey Santos was introduced at half-time as Chelsea seemed to switch shape, and they squandered a great chance when Pedro Neto skewed over from close range following a sweeping counter-attack.
Haaland twice threatened to burst clear, but he was thwarted by excellent defending from Josh Acheampong and Badiashile, respectively, before Jorrel Hato denied Bernardo Silva a clear shot.
Chelsea substitute Liam Delap brilliantly engineered a chance for himself in the 72nd minute by turning Abdukodir Khusanov, but Man City goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma was equal to it.
However, Donnarumma could only parry a close-range effort from Fernandez back into the Argentine’s path deep in stoppage time, and he made no mistake to snatch a share of the spoils.
Man City’s January blues
Eyebrows were raised in some quarters when Guardiola bemoaned a lack of depth ahead of this fixture.
But a look at Man City’s list of absences perhaps backs up his point as Mateo Kovacic, Omar Marmoush, Rayan Ait-Nouri, John Stones and Nico Gonzalez were all missing here.
The hosts were hardly helped when Josko Gvardiol was forced off injured early in the second half, and there was certainly a feeling that Chelsea would always have a sniff of claiming something against a second-string defensive unit.
So it proved, with Man City’s defence not alive to the danger when Malo Gusto crossed in, enabling Fernandez to shoot not once, but twice to squeeze a finish inside the left-hand post.
Guardiola will lament a lack of urgency in the second half, with Man City creating plenty of promising openings, but failing to turn those into quality opportunities.
Man City have started 2026 with back-to-back draws, and that may well have cost them vital points in their title challenge. Time will tell, but for now, Guardiola’s focus will be on rallying his troops for Wednesday’s meeting with Brighton & Hove Albion.
Chelsea stand up to be counted
Chelsea ended 2025 with a 2-2 draw against AFC Bournemouth, and with a cloud hanging over Maresca's future.
That particular issue was all settled before New Year’s Day was done, with Maresca – who is reportedly seen as a potential replacement for Guardiola at Man City – moved on.
But this youthful Chelsea team kept fighting to put a difficult few days behind them.
Cole Palmer was kept quiet against his former club – indeed, a great chance passed him by late in the match when he swung at Hato's low centre – but Fernandez capped a fine individual display by being in the right place at the right time at the death.
And in defence, Badiashile, Acheampong and Hato all played their part with some vital interventions.
Whoever replaces Maresca at Chelsea will certainly have a talented squad to work with, and even if a title fight is beyond them, they are still among the favourites for UEFA Champions League qualification. They are next in action when they face local rivals Fulham on Wednesday.
Club reports
Man City report | Chelsea report
What the managers said
Pep Guardiola: "I don't agree [that City lost control]. They scored a goal and that is why you analyse the result. Of course they made a step up and were more intense in the pressing and they had the chances because we lost two balls in the beginning of the second half. But, if you believe that they shifted the momentum, ok. You maybe know better.
"Chelsea is a world champion team. It is not the academy players there. Top-class players. So to have control for 90 minutes against a team is so, so difficult. We missed chances in the second half, four or five actions of two versus one or three versus two. Our talented players tried to finish the game but we could not do that.
"It is what it is. When you talk about all the stats in all the departments that we can analyse then one is how effective you are in the final third. In general how we defend, how we run, how we play, was extraordinary."
Calum McFarlane: "We were exceptional in the second half. First half didn't go as we planned. That happens when you play against that level of opposition. They shaped up slightly differently and we were pinned back and didn't have control.
"We showed a lot of character and resilience. The lads took the information on board at half time. We changed the shape. We changed the press. It allowed us to get a good foothold in the game. We deserved a minimum of one point."
Next PL fixtures
Key facts
Chelsea have lost just one of their last seven Premier League away games (W3 D3), drawing each of their last three on the road.
After netting one goal in his opening 12 Premier League games this season, Man City’s Reijnders has netted four goals in his last seven appearances, including three in his last four matches.
Fernandez netted his sixth goal of the season, equalling his biggest tally in a Premier League campaign (also six in 2024/25).
Man City have dropped points from a winning position in a home Premier League game for the first time since March 2025 against Brighton (2-2).