Pep Guardiola may insist that Chelsea are the best team in Europe but his Manchester City side will be remembered as one of the goliaths in Premier League history.
The Blues became the first team to gain 100 points in a single season in 2018, the first side in a decade to retain the title in 2019, and are well-placed to win a fourth trophy in five years despite fierce competition from Liverpool and Chelsea. Jurgen Klopp's side have two games in hand on the leaders but are 12 points behind going into their match with Leicester on Thursday evening.
One of the crucial elements to the lead City have taken this season is their ability to maintain control of matches when they go ahead. Guardiola's team have scored the first goal in 19 of their 24 matches so far in the division and have gone on to win all 19 of them; Liverpool have scored the first goal in 19 of their 22 matches, yet have been pegged back on five occasions - including against City at Anfield - to drop 10 points from winning positions.
Staying in control of a game can be the difference between lifting the Premier League trophy or not, and the fact that the Blues haven't dropped any yet is exceptional. So exceptional, in fact, that it has never been done before over a whole campaign.
There have been some heroic efforts collected by statisticians Opta. Liverpool only dropped three points from winning positions in their title challenge in the 2006/07 season, and United did the same in 2009/10.
The benchmark, though, sits with the incredible Chelsea team in 2004/05 that romped to the league title under Jose Mourinho. They clocked up a mammoth 95 points to raise the standards of the league, and claimed a hugely impressive 29 wins. Taking the lead in 30 games, they dropped just two points from winning positions all season - a 2-2 draw with Bolton Wanderers at Stamford Bridge after leading 2-0.
City would have to avoid dropping any points from winning positions for the rest of the season if they want to better that Chelsea record set under Mourinho, but with nearly two-thirds of the season gone and having already played all of their major rivals away from home they have already done much of the work.
Guardiola will not indulge looking beyond the next game while the season is on, but the Blues boss is keenly aware of the records and history that his team make. Setting another new standard for the division would further amplify the achievements City have managed during the manager's time at the Etihad.
