Chelsea host Liverpool in the Premier League on Tuesday night, and the Londoners will be looking to bounce back after a humiliating defeat against Aston Villa.
The London club are currently 11th in the league table and they will be hoping to get their season back on track with a morale-boosting win over Liverpool.
On the other hand, Liverpool are coming into this game on the back of three consecutive defeats in all competitions and they were humiliated by Manchester City in their last Premier League outing.
Jurgen Klopp’s men are currently eight points adrift of the fourth and final Champions League spot and they will need a major slice of luck in order to finish in the top four.
Liverpool cannot afford to keep dropping points if they want to keep their hopes of Champions League football alive. So this is a must-win contest for them.
Full focus on #CheLiv tomorrow.👊 pic.twitter.com/9DCOyROWay
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) April 3, 2023
Team News & Tactics
Chelsea
The home side will be without the services of Armando Broja, Thiago Silva, Cesar Azpilicueta, Edouard Mendy, and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang because of injuries.
Graham Potter was sacked on Sunday and Bruno Saltor is set to take charge of the Blues. Chelsea are likely to line up in a 3-5-2 formation with Kepa Arrizabalaga in goal.
In the back three, Wesley Fofana will start along with Kalidou Koulibaly and Benoit Badiashile.
Reece James and Ben Chilwell are likely to be deployed as the wing-backs here and the two players will look to protect the back three and provide width and creativity from the wide areas.
N’Golo Kante has returned from his injury and he is set to start as the defensive midfielder.
So good to see you back out there yesterday, @nglkante. 💙 pic.twitter.com/shvfPdbVqy
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) April 2, 2023
The Frenchman will look to break up the opposition’s play while Enzo Fernandez will look to add drive and creativity to the side. Mateo Kovacic is set to start in the central midfield as well and the 28-year-old will hope to control the tempo of the game and dominate proceedings in the middle of the park.
Kai Havertz is set to lead the line alongside January signing Joao Felix.
Probable Lineup (3-5-2): Kepa; Fofana, Koulibaly, Badiashile; James, Fernandez, Kante, Kovacic, Chilwell; Havertz, Felix
Liverpool
The visitors will be without the services of Thiago Alcantara, Naby Keita, and Stefan Bajcetic.
Thiago is still nursing a hip injury and Keita picked up a knock during the international break. Bajcetic is out with a long-term injury.
The Reds are likely to start in a 4-3-3 formation with Alisson Becker in goal.
Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andrew Robertson will start as the full-backs here. The two players will be expected to stay compact defensively and provide some width on the counter.
Ibrahima Konate will partner Virgil van Dijk at the heart of the defense. In the middle of the park, Fabinho will start in an anchoring role and he will look to break up the opposition play and win the ball back for his side.
Jordan Henderson will start along with experienced campaigner James Milner. The two players will look to keep the Liverpool midfield compact and add some physicality to the side.
Roberto Firmino is set to lead the line for Liverpool here with Mohamed Salah on his right and Darwin Nunez on the left.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, van Dijk, Robertson; Milner, Fabinho, Henderson; Salah, Firmino, Nunez
Key Stats
- Chelsea have drawn their last 5 matches against Liverpool in all competitions.
- Liverpool have kept a clean sheet in their last 3 matches against Chelsea in all competitions.
- Liverpool have lost eight Premier League away matches this season.
- Chelsea have lost and failed to score in four Premier League home matches this season.
- Out of the 41 meetings they have had, Chelsea have won 12 times and Liverpool have won 13 times. 16 matches have ended in a draw.
Player to Watch
Enzo Fernandez
🇦🇷 Enzo Fernandez has created more chances (5) than any other Chelsea midfielder has created in the last 13 months in the Premier League. Mason Mount (5 vs Norwich) was the last midfielder to achieve as many back in March 2022. #CFC #Chelsea pic.twitter.com/Yuf4maXOc6
— Mozo Football (@MozoFootball) April 2, 2023
The Argentine midfielder joined Chelsea during the January transfer window and he has done reasonably well in the Premier League so far.
Chelsea will look to take advantage of Liverpool’s midfield vulnerabilities and the 22-year-old could help them dominate the contest in the middle of the park.
Fernandez has proven himself as an exceptional passer and he will look to break the lines with his penetrative passing from the deep.
His through passing could cause all sorts of problems for Liverpool, especially with their high line. The Blues have the pace of Felix at their disposal and Fernandez could end up creating a number of opportunities for the Portuguese international.
Prediction
Chelsea 2-1 Liverpool
Both teams are coming into this game on the back of some abysmal performances, and this is likely to be a close contest.
Neither side have been at their best and they will be desperate to turn things around with a morale-boosting result here.
A win here will not only lift the spirits around the club, but it would also relieve some pressure on the players.
The Blues have a better midfield at their disposal and they are likely to dominate proceedings in the middle of the park. Chelsea have enough quality to trouble a vulnerable Liverpool defence and grind out a narrow win.
The Hard Tackle predicts a 2-1 win for the home side.
