Chelsea vs Man City: Potter seeks a landmark victory in battle of the Blues at the Bridge

It's a huge clash in the Premier League at Stamford Bridge as title-chasing Manchester City visit an out-of-sorts Chelsea side on Thursday evening.

Pep Guardiola's men sit eight points off league leaders Arsenal with a game in hand while Chelsea find themselves in mid table after a poor start to Graham Potter's reign.

Ahead of the game, BTSport.com have focused on some of the key talking points in the match - which is available on NOW via BT TV. 

Will Raheem Sterling show Pep Guardiola what he's missing?

Raheem Sterling is poised to face off against his old employers for the first time in the Premier League this season after swapping light blue for royal blue in the summer.

The 28-year-old left Man City after seven years at the Etihad after becoming frustrated with his lack of game time in Guardiola's constantly rotating system. 

"It's a blessing in disguise," Sterling said of his move to Chelsea."But at the time I was raging, fuming, all of that.

“As you can see, even with some of the performances I put in, you couldn't guarantee yourself a place so it just didn't make sense to fight a battle you can never win."

Competition for places at Man City is always fierce - just ask Phil Foden who has yet to start a match since the return of club football after Qatar.

But after 131 goals in 339 games for Man City, Sterling felt he was hard done by and will be keen to show Guardiola just what he's been missing. 

Life at Chelsea hasn't been easy going so far for Sterling. The England winger has scored just four in 14 Premier League games and is struggling for form at his new club.

But should Sterling put in a performance on Thursday night and Chelsea emerge with a huge victory then his decision to move back to London will suddenly look a lot rosier.

Can Potter find the right formula and secure a landmark victory?

Four wins, three draws and four defeats in 11 Premier League games has made for a fairly disastrous start to life at Chelsea for Graham Potter. 

Since taking over from Champions League winner Thomas Tuchel, the results just haven't come for Potter and Chelsea sit 10 points off the top four with almost half the season played. 

A 4-1 defeat to former club Brighton in October was a particular low point as Potter's successor on the south coast Roberto De Zerbi got the better of the Chelsea boss on his former stomping ground.

The 47-year-old hasn't had the rub of the green, having to contend with a series of injuries to key players including N'Golo Kante, Reece James, Wesley Fofana and Ben Chilwell.

But having experimented with a series of formations and different starting XIs, Potter is still struggling to find what works best.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Kai Havertz and Armando Broja - before his serious injury - have all been played up front with little success. Havertz and Sterling are Chelsea's two top scorers with four goals each and new recruit David Datro Fofana has been signed to try and help with the lack of goals.

In midfield Potter chops and changes with Denis Zakaria, Mason Mount and Jorginho forming the three in the 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest since the Chelsea boss has reverted to four at the back.

At the back, Marc Cucurella hasn't hit the heights he did at Brighton while Kalidou Koulibaly is struggling with the pace of the Premier League.

With plenty of options at his disposal but none that Potter appears to be convinved by, he'll need to find the right formula and fast.

Will Man City cut the gap on Arsenal?

Frustration, disappointment, then relief... A genuine Premier League title race is a rollercoaster of emotions and Manchester City are in the thick of one at the moment.

Man City's draw at home to Everton, inflicted by a truly stunning equaliser from Demarai Gray, was exarcerbated by Arsenal's 4-2 win at Brighton on New Year's Eve. 

But Arsenal were then held by high-flying Newcastle on Tuesday night so Man City have the chance to cut the gap to five points on Mikel Arteta's side with a big win away at Chelsea. 

It seems unlikely that Arsenal can keep up this sort of form throughout the entire season after The Gunners made their best-ever start to a Premier League campaign.

Yet whether the usually relentless Man City can catch them is another matter. Guardiola's champions have been below their best both before and after the Qatar World Cup break.

Man City's embarrassment of riches means that when one superstar drops out, another slots in seamlessly at the whim of Guardiola. 

Phil Foden and Joao Cancelo, left out in recent weeks, are two examples of 'Pep Roulette' and the Man City boss suggested their absences have not been a tactical decision. "You cannot play good when the body language is not correct," was the Spaniard's verdict. 

Guardiola must help restore the dressing room harmony and get his team back firing on all cylinders if he's to hunt down his former protege Arteta in the title race. Chelsea on Thursday is a huge test.