EPL: Liverpool vs. Chelsea Preview, Odds, Head to Head, Prediction
It’s Liverpool and Chelsea on Saturday afternoon. Anfield will host Chelsea in the derby game of Saturday’s program. Both units find themselves in a very difficult spot due to the fact that the Reds and the Blues are far away from the expected positions. Liverpool still has certain chances to reach the top four places and the ticket for the UEFA Champions League next year. Chelsea has the same number of points as the Reds, with a game more than the upcoming rivals, and if they lose here, the Blues could even miss the international competitions.
Liverpool (-110) lost the last two EPL games and currently looks like a broken army. The only thing that gives hope to their fans is an offense because of an unreal potential that could go off at any given moment. Meanwhile, the defense is maybe in the worst shape since Klopp took over the wheel.
After losing to Brentford, 3-1, they had another pretty disappointing performance in Brighton against the seagulls, 3-0, and on top of that, the pylon of the entire back line, Virgil Van Dijk, is out due to an injury. Besides him, several other players are injured, and they will be out, more about that in the upcoming chapter.
What is a positive thing for the Reds in the current situation are solid results at home. They won seven of the past nine events at Anfield across all competitions.
Chelsea (+300) had a lot of luck against Crystal Palace, winning 1-0, and snapping their cold streak that lasted for quite some time. Truth be told, the Eagles didn’t deserve to lose, but football is sometimes unfair.
The Blues won only for the second time in the past nine games, losing six contests and posting one draw. Overall, this is one of the worst periods for the former European champions in the previous five years. After a solid start, Graham Potter lost control of the team and is now in deep trouble.
Away from home, the situation is equally bad, if not worse. Chelsea has five losses and one draw in the most recent six outings, not being able to score on three occasions. On the other side, they allowed two or more goals four times.
The Reds are without Van Dijk, Firmino, Diogo jota, Luis Diaz, and Arthur. Darwin Nunez is questionable, and his appearance is 50-50.
Chelsea’s injury list isn’t much better. First of all, Joao Felix is suspended. Zakaria, Sterling, Pulisic, Mendy, Broja, Chilwell, James, and Fofana are all out. Kante could be in the protocol.
Head to Head Games
The Reds and the Blues met four times last year. Two contests were in the English Premier League, ending with draws, 1-1 in Liverpool and 2-2 at Stamford. After that, we saw them in the cup finals, in the Carabao, 0-0, and the FA as well. Though, Liverpool was better on penalties on both occasions.
Prediction
Liverpool is disastrous in the back line, and so is Chelsea, and that’s why we have to go with both teams scoring in this case. The odds on that are -166, and in our opinion, it is a good offer.
