England Premier League, 3-5 April

[spkutano]

 

[spkutano]

Chelsea vs Liverpool Preview:

Possible starting lineups:

Chelsea:
Kepa; Badiashile, Koulibaly, Fofana; James, Fernandez, Kante, Chilwell; Mount, Havertz; Felix

Liverpool:
Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Tsimikas; Henderson, Fabinho; Salah, Firmino, Jota; Nunez

Chelsea welcome Liverpool to Stamford Bridge on the back of demoralizing defeats for both sides. The Blues suffered a 2:0 home defeat to Aston Villa on Saturday, while the Reds were humiliated at the Etihad losing 4:1 to Manchester City. Chelsea are currently on the 11th place, far away from the Champions League spots. The situation is totally unacceptable for a club of their stature and financial firepower. Maybe the American owner Todd Boehly made a mistake when sacked Tuchel. As I wrote above, they lost to Aston Villa during the weekend. Graham Potter's men had the possession, but failed to score. On contrary, Ollie Watkins and John McGinn were clinical and the fans left Stamford Bridge frustrated. Their main question was how long the owners will continue to support Potter. Well, not anymore - he was sacked on Sunday after just 31 matches. Bruno Saltor, who was part of Potter's coaching staff at Brighton and joined Chelsea with him in September, will be in charge as interim manager. His inexperience could be a big problem. To be worse, he also has some injury issues. Armando Broja, Cesar Azpilicueta and Thiago Silva remain sidelined, while this match probably come too soon for Edouard Mendy and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. However, Raheem Sterling and Wesley Fofana could recover in time for Tuesday's battle. N'Golo Kante made his first Premier League appearance since August off the bench against Villa and could start here.

Liverpool are in very complicated situation. The Reds are very inconsistent this season, but the last two defeats were like a catastrophe. According to me, the Champions League dreams are no more realistic. Jurgen Klopp said he and his players will not give up, but they are under enormous pressure. Asked about his position, the German coach has said he is still Liverpool manager "because of the past" rather than his team's current form. Indeed, Klopp has helped Liverpool win club football's major honours during seven and a half years at Anfield, making him the longest-serving manager in the Premier League. But the players confidence is low and that's a huge problem. With 42 points from 27 matches, Liverpool are in danger of their worst league finish under Klopp. The Reds visit Chelsea on Tuesday and then face the leaders Arsenal on Sunday. The injury situation is improving, but Calvin Ramsay and Stefan Bajcetic and Naby Keita remain sidelined. Luis Diaz has made his return to team training as he closes in on a comeback from knee surgery, but this match comes too soon for him. Key creative Thiago Alcantara is two or three weeks away from returning to the turf.
Left-back Andy Robertson could be replaced by Kostas Tsimikas after a disappointing performance at the Etihad.

Chelsea vs Liverpool Prediction:

Chelsea are in poor form and Chelsea are without head coach Graham Potter. Bruno Saltor, who's announced as interim manager, is inexperienced. However, I am sure the Blues will start to play better in the next period. Klopp is also under huge pressure, but still on the managerial position. Chelsea have the home advantage, but I think Klopp will find a way to neutralize them. The Reds have lost three matches in a row, all of them as guests. I think the series must stop some time and this is an ideal moment. Both managers - Bruno and Klopp - should be happy with draw.

Chelsea vs Liverpool Preview: Draw @ 3.60 with Pinnacle