Both Chelsea and Liverpool had a terrible weekend in their last Premier League matches. Chelsea lost 2-0 to Aston Villa, causing them to drop into the bottom half of the league table.
After only six months in charge of Chelsea, Graham Potter was sacked from his position as manager. His return of 1.27 points per game makes him the joint-lowest points-per-game return of any manager to take charge of 20 or more games for Chelsea in the Premier League, tied with Glenn Hoddle.
Bruno Saltor will act as the interim manager, and his first task will be to raise the team’s standings. Chelsea’s poor recent head-to-head form against Liverpool is also concerning, with the team winning just twice in the sides’ last 16 Premier League meetings and being winless in their last four home league matches.
On the other hand, Liverpool suffered a 4-1 defeat at the hands of title contenders Manchester City, leading Jurgen Klopp to describe the performance as “unacceptable.” The loss marked their third consecutive defeat in all competitions, pushing them to eighth place in the table.
Liverpool’s difficult 2023 has likely dashed hopes of a trophy this season, with five of their 11 league games being lost this year. The team now faces the possibility of finishing outside of the top four, something that has not happened since Klopp’s debut season in 2015-16. The prospect of playing in the Europa League is currently the only hope for the struggling team.
RECENT MEETING
Earlier this year, Chelsea and Liverpool played out a goalless draw at Anfield with 26 shots and 3.1 expected goals created between them.
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Kai Havertz scored a goal in the second minute, but it was disallowed by VAR. Chelsea’s debutant Mykhailo Mudryk came closest to breaking the deadlock in the second half with a shot that hit the side-netting. The two sides have drawn in their last five matches in all competitions.
If Liverpool draws again in their next match, it will be the first time they have drawn six times in a row against an opponent. Meanwhile, the last time Chelsea drew six games in a row against a top-flight opponent was between August 1954 and February 1956 against Burnley.
In this fixture, Jürgen Klopp celebrated his 1,000th game as a manager, and César Azpilicueta made his 500th appearance for Chelsea, becoming the first non-English player to reach this milestone for the club. Stefan Bajcetic, who started the match, became the youngest player to start a Premier League game for Liverpool since Ben Woodburn in April 2017.
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RECENT FORM
It’s no surprise that Chelsea have parted ways with Potter, given their recent form. They have won only two of their last nine EPL matches and one of their last five at home. In front of goal, they have been extremely blunt, failing to score in three of those five matches.
The Blues’ scoring struggles have been a problem all season, having scored only 29 goals from 355 shots in the Premier League. Their shot conversion rate of 8.2% is their lowest on record in a single campaign in the division, dating back to 1997-98.
On the other hand, Liverpool is having a tough time on the road, having won only once in their last seven competitive away games and losing their last three in all competitions. In the Premier League, they’ve earned just 12 points on their travels, which is fewer than two teams in the relegation zone (Leicester City and Southampton).
Liverpool’s upcoming fixtures also pose a challenge, with four of their next eight games against top-half teams (Arsenal, Tottenham, Fulham, Brentford) and reverse meetings against Leeds and Nottingham Forest, both of whom they lost to in the previous fixtures.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
N’golo Kante (Chelsea): Perhaps the only good thing to come out of Saturday’s defeat to Aston Villa was N’Golo Kante making his first Premier League appearance since August. The dynamic French midfielder has been out with a long-term hamstring injury.
While there’s little chance he plays 90 minutes in midweek, there’s a chance he starts in place of Mateo Kovacic and his presence alongside Enzo Fernandez could puncture the despondent and stale atmosphere surrounding the Bridge. His running could help provide some much-needed protection to a Chelsea defence that is feeling the absence of Thiago Silva. Marc Cucurella and Kalidou Koulibaly didn’t cover themselves in glory, while Ben Chilwell is only just back from a long-term injury himself.
There’s also a chance Raheem Sterling is fit to appear against his former club after he returned to training last week. He’ll likely be matched up against Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Mohamed Salah (Liverpool): While Cody Gakpo and Darwin Nunez have flashed in moments and with Luis Diaz a long-term absentee, Mohamed Salah has been Liverpool’s most consistent player this season. He has a team-high 23 goals in all competitions for the Reds and his opening strike against Man City, a confident finish from a Diogo Jota setback, at the weekend was his 12th in the Premier League. With seven league assists to boot, Salah also leads this side in the creative department too.
He’s scored four goals in 11 Premier League games against Chelsea – the only player to score more times against the Blues after having previously played for them in the competition is Kevin De Bruyne (five).
PREDICTION
Despite their recent struggles on the road, the Opta supercomputer favours Liverpool in this one, giving them a 40.2% of winning on Tuesday. The Reds have excellent recent form over Chelsea and have also have won 13 of their last 14 midweek (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) Premier League games, including each of the last nine in a row since a 1-0 loss to Leicester in December 2021.