Stars align for Manuel Pellegrini’s Manchester City

Chelsea 0 Manchester City 3

The stars in Pellegrini’s case are his most high-profile players who are hitting form at the perfect time, as the Chilean attempts to engineer the success his Abu Dhabi employers have craved most, and deliver the Champions League trophy to the Etihad Stadium.

The irony, of course, is that Pellegrini will leave at the end of the season partly because of the perception he is unable to take the club to the next level, a level that Pep Guardiola, the incoming manager, had appeared born to before his three-year stint at Bayern Munich.