PREVIEW: Liverpool vs Chelsea – 25/11/17

Liverpool vs Chelsea

Date: 25^th November 2017

K.O: 17.30pm

Venue: Anfield

TV: BT Sport 1

Liverpool host Chelsea in the late kick-off on Saturday at Anfield, with just three points separating them in the Premier League table.

Team News:

Liverpool look to have a near to full squad available to them or as near as they have been this season. Lallana is ‘knocking on the door’ to be fit but is unlikely to be risked by Klopp and they are also hoping to have Joel Matip back to start alongside Lovren at the heart of the defence. From the ex-Chelsea contingent all of Sturridge, Solanke, and Salah look ready to face their old employers.

For Chelsea, Conte seems to have found his new system for this year which is a 3-5-2 rather than last years 3-4-3 with Hazard hovering freely around Morata up top. All of Morata, Christensen, Bakayoko, and Kante were given either a full or partial games rest so they should be ready for this weekend and with Willian coming in to form and Hazard basically match fit the Blues look ready for the weekend.

Preview:

I am very very excited for this match it looks all set to be a rather exciting game. Liverpool have been truly frightening going forward at times this season and Chelsea have been known to be rather lax at the back, yet at the same time Morata and Hazard look to be in fantastic form so this could well be a game of whichever attack force fires wins. These two sides had differing mid-week performances: Chelsea blew away an inferior opposition in the shape of the Azerbaijan champions FC Qarabag whereas Liverpool managed to blow a 3-0 lead against Sevilla, so maybe the Blues come into this with more momentum behind them.

If I were Liverpool I would be slightly worried, Chelsea seem to have hit form at the right time coming into the Christmas period. Hazard is fully fit and firing, Morata is banging them in, and after his barren patch Willian looks back to his scintillating best. In addition, Andreas Christensen seems to have found his Premier League feet and N’golo Kante is back bossing things in the centre of the back. Liverpool I fear will be a tad blown away but this fully functioning Chelsea team, I can’t see them winning this, even if it is in their own backyard.

Liverpool 1-2 Chelsea for me Clive.

Written by Olly Norman.