Venue: Stamford Bridge
Record (W-L-D), Points, and Last 5 Results
Liverpool: Record (1-0-0) (Points) Form – WDLWW
- Stuttgart (Friendly): Won 0-3
- RB Salzburg (Friendly): Tied 2-2
- Arsenal (Wembley): Lost 1-1 (Pen)
- Blackpool (H/Friendly): Won 7-2
- Leeds United (H): Won 4-3
Chelsea: Record (1-0-0) (3) Form – WLLDW
- Manchester United (Wembley/FA Cup Semi-Final): Won 3-1
- Arsenal (Wembley/FA Cup Final): Lost 2-1
- Bayern Munich (A): Lost 4-1
- Brighton (A/Friendly): Tied 1-1
- Brighton (A): Won 3-1
Possible Absences:
Liverpool:
- Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Injury)
Chelsea:
- Thiago Silva (Injury/Match fitness)
- Ben Chilwell (Injury/Match fitness)
- Hakim Ziyech (Injury/Match fitness)
- Christian Pulisic (Injury)
- Billy Gilmour (Injury)
Predicted Starting XI:
Liverpool (4-3-3)
- Alisson Becker
- Trent Alexander-Arnold, Virgil Van Dijk, Joel Matip, Andy Robertson
- Jordan Henderson, Fabinho, Naby Keita
- Mohammed Salah, Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane
Chelsea (Formation)
- Kepa Arrizabalaga
- Reece James, Andreas Christensen, Kurt Zouma, Marcos Alonso
- N’Golo Kante, Jorginho
- Kai Havertz, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Mason Mount
- Timo Werner
What a game we have in store. A newly strengthened Chelsea side against the defending champions Liverpool. There are bound to be fireworks on the pitch with the firepower of both sides, but there have been fireworks off of the pitch leading up to the game. The main actions have been taken by Liverpool who have agreed deals for both Thiago Alcantara and Diogo Jota. Thiago was signed early enough that he is eligible to play in this game. However, it’s very doubtful he will start, and if anything, he might be used as a substitute. This signing has come at the end of a crazy long transfer saga that seemed never ending. Then, when it ended, another one appeared and ended in a blink of an eye. Two signings in two days for Liverpool fans after waiting so long must have felt like Christmas.
Whether Thiago plays or not this should be a very exciting encounter that some are already calling a six pointer in the title race. Reminder, we’re one game into the season. To say that already is borderline absurd in my opinion, but if people really believe Chelsea and Liverpool are both title contenders, they aren’t necessarily wrong.
I think this game will in a large part come down to the tactics of the two managers. In this regard it’s going to be a lot more difficult for Lampard. With the injuries he’s dealing with he may be forced into sitting back rather than attacking, but Liverpool proved a versatility to their game last season, allowing them to take advantage of both defensive and attacking teams. And with Chelsea missing some players, I think Liverpool have a clearly stronger squad going into the game.
With Chelsea possibly going defensively I think Klopp will lean towards starting Naby Keita for help breaking down the defense. It could easily be Gini Wijnaldum as the third midfielder as well. I also believe Klopp might start Joel Matip but that could also easily be Joe Gomez. Other than that the Liverpool team chooses itself.
For Chelsea, with the injuries they have the team also basically chooses itself. The only player I think could lose his place is Ruben Loftus-Cheek, because he played poorly in their game against Brighton. Callum Hudson-Odoi or Ross Barkley could take his place if that’s the case. Barkley would be a straight swap, while Hudson-Odoi would probably play out wide with either Havertz or Mount moving to the middle.
My Prediction: Chelsea 1 – 3 Liverpool. I think Liverpool will just be too good for Chelsea and more or less dominate the game. I do think Chelsea will find a way to score with the talent in both Timo Werner and Kai Havertz. If Chelsea had the likes of Pulisic, Ziyech, Silva, and Chilwell I would be more inclined to predict a closer game. But without those players I think they have a tough ask to beat a basically full-strength defending champions Liverpool, at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
The Possible Absences and Starting XI portions of the article will be updated as necessary up until starting lineups are announced