WE’VE GOT LIVE football from England’s top flight this evening with Chelsea entertaining Liverpool at 8pm.
The team news is in and all so I’ll bring you that straight away. The Londoners make one change to the side that drew with Swansea last Sunday as David Luiz comes in for the injured John Terry to make his second debut for the club.
Jurgen Klopp makes two personnel switches, the first of which is enforced. Roberto Firmino has picked up a groin injury and has been replaced by Philippe Coutinho, while Dejan Lovren comes into the defence in place of Lucas Leiva.
Chelsea: Courtois, Ivanovic (c), Cahill, Luiz, Azpilicueta, Kante, Willian, Oscar, Matic, Hazard, Costa.
Liverpool: Mignolet, Clyne, Matip, Lovren, Milner, Henderson (c), Wijnaldum, Lallana, Coutinho, Mane, Sturridge.
Signed by Chelsea from Benfica in 2011, David Luiz was sold to Paris Saint-Germain for £50m in the summer of 2014.
The 29-year-old is back for a second spell with the Blues after they surprisingly paid £34m to secure his return on transfer deadline deal, and he starts tonight.
Speaking on Sky Sports, Gary Neville has just said:
I would never have put those two together (Conte and Luiz). It feels a little bit strange. If I was to thinking of an analogy to describe it, I’d say probably me and Miss World.”
Neither of these clubs were involved in European football during midweek, but from their first four Premier League outings Chelsea have ten points thanks to three wins and a draw, while Liverpool sit on seven points after two wins, one draw and a defeat.
Here’s proof that Klopp has successfully brought in his tactic of out-running the opponent to Liverpool.
Jurgen Klopp spent much of Liverpool’s warm-up glued to Chelsea’s…
The players are waiting in the tunnel and we aren’t far away from kick-off.
What’s your prediction then?
KICK-OFF- We’re away and it’s Liverpool who are first to attack. A cross from the right is met by Wijnaldum and his attempt is comfortably colllected by Courtois.
SHOT ON GOAL – Sturridge cuts in from the right and lets fly. The shot straight at Chelsea’s Belgian goalkeeper, who eventually smothers the second time of asking, however.
The game has got off to a franctic start and Chelsea have been lucky with a couple of suspect passes out of defence — first by Ivanovic, then Cahill.
GOAL! Chelsea 0-1 Liverpool (Dejan Lovren)
The visitors go ahead! They take a short free-kick out on the left and it is played back to the feet of Coutinho, who curls a cross to the back post.
Lovren, completely unmarked with three team-mates, calmly volleys the ball past Courtois for his first Premier League goal in a Liverpool shirt.
Where were the Chelsea defence?
Liverpool deserved their lead. They’ve looked a lot sharper than a lacklustre Chelsea in the opening 20 minutes.
Sturridge drills the ball across Chelsea’s goalmouth but there’s no one on-hand to turn it home.
Chelsea are showing signs of improvement and they have won a free-kick in a dangerous area as Clyne brings down Hazard. Willian takes the set-piece and Luiz gets his head to the ball. Mignolet saves, but the linesman’s flag is up for offside anyway.
GOAL! Liverpool 2-0 Chelsea (Jordan Henderson)
That is some hit! Cahill clears as far as Henderson, who looks up and sends an unstoppable dipping strike into the top corner. Wow.
Trademark fist-pumping from Herr Klopp.
Half-time: Chelsea 0-2 Liverpool
SECOND HALF – The game has restarted. Antonio Conte will have let the Chelsea players know his feelings during the interval so you would expect some improvement from the home side in the second 45 minutes.
A period of Chelsea pressure ends in a Liverool goal-kick as Ivanovic cuts inside Milner then goes down with any contact inside the box. Never a penalty.
SUBSTITUTION – Liverpool have just brought on Origi for Sturridge.
GOAL! Chelsea 1-2 Liverpool (Diego Costa)
They’ve got one back. Hazard feeds Matic down the inside channel and the Serbian midfielder does extremely well to pick out Costa, who side-foots a volley into the back of the net.
The striker has been quiet tonight and that was actually his first shot on goal.
Game on.
SHOT – The goal has put the wind in Chelsea’s sails and Costa has another effort on goal, which Mignolet keeps out.
Cahill blocks Coutinho’s shot and the ball is booted away. Liverpool looking more likely to score a third in the last couple of minutes.
SAVE! Coutinho sets Milner free and his whipped ball is deflected off Ivanovic right onto the head of Origi, who should score but sees the attempt kept out by Courtois.
Liverpool have just replaced Coutinho with Lucas too.
TRIPLE SUBSTITUTION – Conte rings in the changes with Moses, Fabregas and Pedro on for Willian, Matic and Oscar.
FREE-KICK – Hazard goes over easily after substitute Lucas sticks his foot out and Chelsea have a set-piece in a great area — just outside the box. Lucas has also been booked.
Fabregas steps up but crashes his shot straight into the wall.
Three minutes of additional time to play…
Full-time: Chelsea 1-2 Liverpool
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