A stuttering Liverpool provides the first test for the new Premier League champions, travelling to Stamford Bridge for a Monday morning clash with Chelsea.
This always blockbuster feature is a true illustration of just how far fortunes can change in football, with Jose Mourinho’s men ruining the Reds’ title hopes at nearly the same time last season.
The Merseysiders will be unable to repay the debt this time around, Chelsea’s 1-0 win over Crystal Palace last weekend putting the title race beyond mathematical certainty. Despite looking far from a side which has dominated the domestic competition since August, Eden Hazard’s follow-up on his failed spot-kick just before half-time gave the Blues enough of an advantage to ride out in trademark fashion.
Meanwhile, the pressure is now slowly beginning to mount on Brendan Rodgers, signalled by a banner calling for the managers’ sacking flown over Anfield before the previous match against QPR. Although a late goal from Steven Gerrard redeemed an earlier missed penalty of his own and captured the three points, other hit-and-miss outings, such as recent defeats to the likes of Hull City in the Premier League and Aston Villa in the FA Cup, see Liverpool clinging to fifth spot with Europa qualification the likely only reward for a crushing 2014/15 campaign.
Key Battle – Eden Hazard vs Philippe Coutinho
Hazard has had a difficult time recently getting decent time when in possession of the ball, but the goals he produced out of nearly thin air against Crystal Palace and Manchester United a few weeks prior guided the Blues to the Premier League in a few crucial minutes of deadly counter-attacking brilliance. The Belgian has been the main scoring outlet in the absence of Diego Costa, and can hurt Liverpool both with a solo-run and from set-pieces, where the Reds have looked particularly shaky in recent matches.
There is no doubt that if left unattended, Philippe Coutinho himself has the ability to turn a game upside down, punishing any opposition lapse in concentration with wicked instincts for the back of the net. Yet he faces a brick wall on Monday, in the form of the Chelsea defence that are on home soil and the 22-year-old will need to take advantage of every spare yard if Liverpool are to pose any threat.
Team News
Amongst the celebrations since the title-sealing victory, there has still been some bad news for Chelsea as talismanic forward Costa looks to miss the rest of the season due to continual hamstring troubles. The pressure is light on Mourinho here, meaning he could give Gary Cahill a much needed rest in place of the impressive Kurt Zouma, while impressive showings from Ramires may also see him take a starting role.
Chelsea expected XI: Courtois (GK); Ivanovic, Terry, Zouma, Azpilicueta; Ramires, Matic; Willian, Fabregas, Hazard; Drogba
Brendan Rodgers is likely to forego a natural striker of his own once more, however, the output seen from Jordan Ibe off the bench last week could see him take the starting spot of Adam Lallana in the front-three.
Liverpool expected XI: Mignolet (GK); Can, Skrtel, Lovren, Johnson; Henderson, Gerrard, Allen; Ibe, Coutinho, Sterling
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Head-to-head
History has seen these teams meet 163 times before, with Liverpool still on top recording 70 wins to 57 from the Londoners and 36 matches ending in a draw. Chelsea have a far superior record when it comes to the encounters at Stamford Bridge though, holding 43 wins to 19 at the blue fortress.
Previous Meeting
Chelsea emerged victorious in a fiery two-leg affair in the League Cup Semi-final played out in January, but not without their casualties, as Costa was handed a three-match ban for stomping on Martin Skrtel. The Blues also claimed maximum rewards in the previous domestic fixture, a 2-1 win back in November.
Prediction
With Liverpool’s attacking form being described as insipid at best, the onus looks to be on Chelsea as to the result of this match. With their domestic goal fulfilled, it will be interesting to see whether Mourinho instructs his team to press the action, or if the team is content to grind out the rest of the campaign. At the moment, the Reds seem most vulnerable to conceding in the areas where Chelsea are the strongest, and the new champions of England will have enough up their sleeves to prevail again on Monday.
Chelsea 2 Liverpool 0
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