Liverpool look to maintain their surging run in the 2024/25 Premier League when they host a rejuvenated Chelsea side at Anfield on Sunday (20 October).
The Reds have won more matches than any other team in England’s top flight in this campaign and consistency is the name of the game for the ambitious Arne Slot.
But the Reds are going to face what might arguably be their toughest test this season against Chelsea. Enzo Maresca’s side have only lost one game in the Premier League and boast a highly impressive away record. The Italian gaffer has gotten them playing incisive, efficient football and is getting the best out of the outstanding Cole Palmer.
The matches between these teams have been relatively cagey in recent seasons, but the competitive levels will be raised for the feisty encounter at Anfield.
With Liverpool keen on retaining their place on top of the league table and Chelsea looking to close the gap to the first spot, this should be an eventful battle where the minute details will be decisive.
Last 5 Games
Liverpool have enjoyed a blistering start to the Arne Slot era and have been quite the well-oiled machine under him. They have won four of their last five Premier League games under the gaffer, which was kick-started by the huge 3-0 thrashing of Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Liverpool have also shown a lot of resolve with gritty wins over Wolves and Crystal Palace in recent weeks, proving that they can decisive enough to scratch out victories even in tricky away matches.
But unlike Liverpool, Chelsea haven’t even lost one of their last Premier League games. They have somehow managed to avoid defeats since the opening game-week loss to Manchester City.
Enzo Maresca’s side have been particularly eye-catching in away games, picking up big wins over West Ham United and Bournemouth earlier on this campaign. They went into the October international break with an eventful draw and are eager to get back to winning ways at a tricky place like Anfield.
Liverpool: 1st
Win: 1-0 vs Crystal Palace
Win: 2-1 vs Wolves
Win: 3-0 vs Bournemouth
Loss: 1-0 vs Nottingham Forest
Win: 3-0 vs Manchester United
Chelsea: 4th
Draw: 1-1 vs Nottingham Forest
Win: 4-2 vs Brighton
Win: 3-0 vs West Ham United
Win: 1-0 vs Bournemouth
Draw: 1-1 vs Crystal Palace
Team News
Liverpool have faced a major blow before the Chelsea game after discovering that their ace goalkeeper Alisson Becker won’t be available. He’s going to be out of action until after the November international break after sustaining a hamstring injury in the win over Crystal Palace.
Harvey Elliott is another injury absentee for the Reds, while Federico Chiesa’s involvement against Chelsea is in doubt as well.
Chelsea are not dealing with any major injury problems right now, which is rather astonishing considering they suffered from 43 separate cases of injuries last season.
Young midfielder Omari Kellyman remains the only absentee. Reece James is actually back after struggling with an injury problem early in the campaign. But Chelsea will miss defenders Wesley Fofana and Marc Cucurella for this match as they’re suspended.
Possible Lineups
Liverpool:
Caoimhin Kelleher, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ibrahima Konate, Virgil van Dijk, Andy Robertson, Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, Mo Salah, Luis Diaz, Diogo Jota
Chelsea:
Robert Sanchez, Malo Gusto, Tosin Adarabioyo, Levi Colwill, Renato Veiga, Moises Caicedo, Enzo Fernandez, Noni Madueke, Cole Palmer, Jadon Sancho, Nicolas Jackson
Head-to-Head
Liverpool and Chelsea have had a competitive rivalry in the Premier League over the last few decades. The two popular English teams have been butting heads against each other since their first match in 1907 and have played each other on 197 occasions in the past. Liverpool have won 86 of those matches and Chelsea have come out on top on 65 occasions.
Liverpool picked up a huge win over the Blues in their previous Premier League encounter back in February, 2024. Despite Darwin Nunez missing a penalty, they still picked up a huge 4-1 win thanks to goals from Conor Bradley, Diogo Jota, Dominik Szoboszlai and Luis Diaz.
The last time that Chelsea defeated Liverpool was actually at Anfield in the 2020/21 season. Mason Mount, not at Manchester United, had scored the winning goal for the Blues as they picked up a 1-0 win over Liverpool, something they’ll aim to replicate in the upcoming clash.
Where Will The Game Be Decided?
Mohamed Salah might have one goal in his last four Premier League matches, but he’s tailor made for the big matches at Anfield. Salah appears to be re-energized by the Anfield crowd’s passion in the big games.
Salah contributed to all three goals (one goal, two assists) in Liverpool’s win over United and is coming off a prolific international break. With no Cucurella, Salah can be a tormenting factor for young Renato Veiga. He will definitely get into the best positions and as long as Salah can be at his clinical best, then he can run riot on the Chelsea backline.
With Liverpool only conceding two goals in the Premier League this season, Chelsea don’t have a lot of knowledge on how to break them. However, the Reds have looked shaky against quick-paced counter-attacks.
That is what can make the game for Maresca’s side. They need to look to change the game with their fast-breaks using the pace of Madueke, Sancho, Jackson and the wit of Palmer. The young front-four need to be smart with their final product and finish off chances efficiently, as they can be the potential turning point of the match.
Prediction
Considering the good form which both teams are riding on, this match isn’t an easy one to predict. But apart from that blip against Forest, Liverpool have been deadly in home games under Slot. They’ve won four of their five matches (across all competitions) in rather dominant fashion and still seem to have that explosiveness at home like they did under Jurgen Klopp.
Chelsea have been impressive at away matches this season. They’ve scored a lot of goals and show a lot of steel to their performance. But they haven’t faced a ruthless side like Liverpool on the road yet. Moreover, they’re also missing two important defenders against one of the best attacking sides in the league.
Liverpool won’t have it easy and will have push hard for it, but they should get a narrow win in this game.
Prediction: Liverpool 1-0 Chelsea
Odds
Liverpool win: 8/13
Draw: 31/10
Chelsea: 4/1
The oddmakers are going for a Liverpool win in this one as the Reds are given a strong 61.9% probability of getting all three points from this Premier League clash. Their 8/13 odds mean that if one was to bet £10 on them to win and that result happens, then that individual would be getting a £16.15 return and a £6.15 profit. But if one was to bet on Chelsea to win with their 4/1 odds and the Blues somehow pull off the victory, then they’d get a whopping £50 return for a £10 bet.
Two out of the last four Premier League matches between these two sides have resulted in a 0-0 draw. So the under 2.5 goals (2/1) odds can be an interesting one to keep an eye on here.
- By Bet365 at the time of writing.
Kickoff Time
The game kicks off at 16:30 PM GST at the Anfield Stadium. John Brooks is the referee who will be overseeing this match. Stuart Bart will be on VAR duty.
