Liverpool-Chelsea is a match valid for the twenty-first day of the Premier League and is played on Saturday at 13:30: statistics, TV, formations, predictions.
The two Premier League biggies who have disappointed the most so far. After all, the standings, at the halfway mark, do not lie and speak for themselves: Liverpool and Chelsea present themselves at the direct clash at Anfield Road with the same points, twenty-eight, even if the Reds have played one match less than the Blues. Ninth versus tenth in the table, then.
Strictly anonymous positions that have nothing to do with what were the initial plans of the two clubs, who have two battleships full of expensive champions built to fight for the title. At the moment, barring sensational comebacks, winning the championship is a utopia. But, at this rate, the fourth place will also begin to be, as there is a gap of ten points between them and Newcastle. This challenge therefore assumes the contours of a real play-off, in which the loser could seriously risk saying goodbye to the possibility of playing in the Champions League next year. Quite a bloodbath from an economic point of view, considering that both Liverpool and Chelsea are continuing to spend and spend in this market.
The two most disappointing biggies are playing each other
The lion’s share is being played by Chelsea. After getting their hands on Monaco’s Badiashile, the Blues have snapped up the young Ukrainian talent Mudryk, who arrived in London for around 100 million euros.
Havertz and Mount
Now Graham Potter, whose bench has begun to wobble, has no excuse. His Chelsea team returned to winning ways last Sunday, but were not entirely convincing against Crystal Palace, beaten 1-0 at Stamford Bridge. The Reds also moved fairly quickly, burning off competition for Dutchman Gakpo, but in the league Jurgen Klopp’s men come from two bloody defeats against Brentford and Brighton, conceding six goals in total. And last Tuesday’s success in the FA Cup replay against Wolverhampton, pipped by an Elliott goal, would remain just a sweetener should Salah and co. fail to get the better of the Londoners in their clash.
The Prediction
In the FA Cup, Liverpool’s defence, far from solid this year, recorded a clean sheet after a long time, despite Wolverhampton coming close to scoring the equaliser several times. Chelsea is struggling with a number of absences and in our opinion is a slight underdog in this match – the Reds have only lost once at Anfield – but they should be able to pierce Klopp’s fragile rearguard on at least one occasion. At least three goals in total are likely in this match between big disappointments.
The Liverpool-Chelsea line-up probables
- LIVERPOOL (4-3-3): Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Konaté, Robertson; Elliott, Fabinho, Thiago Alcantara; Salah, Darwin Nunez, Gakpo.
- CHELSEA (4-3-3): Kepa; Chalobah, Badiashile, Thiago Silva, Hall; Kovacic, Jorginho, Gallagher; Ziyech, Aubameyang, Mount.
POSSIBLE RESULT: 2-1
