Liverpool and Chelsea close the EPL program this Saturday at Anfield. The two fantastic squads will clash in the first mega derby of the campaign and give us a few hints on their overall state. Even though it is still early for any predictions, this match might be very valuable in the end because of a tiebreak or something like that. Let us remind you that the Reds and the Blues are the biggest favorites for winning the Premiership along with Manchester City.
Preview
Liverpool (+145) is without a defeat in six straight games, including the preseason. When looking only at the competitive events, the Reds recorded two victories against Norwich, 0-3, and Burnley, 2-0. As you can see, Liverpool didn’t allow a goal in these two encounters, although we have to admit that the rivals didn’t have some amazing attacking potential.
Jurgen Klopp didn’t change the roster too much this summer, and his biggest gains were the comeback of the injured players, among them Virgil Van Dijk. From what we saw in these prep matches, the Dutch recovered well from his tough injury, and he should be one of the best defenders in the world again.
Lpool plays very rationally, not scoring a goal or two and then waiting for the rivals to open up and try to erase the minus. In those moments, the fantastic counter-attack of the Reds emerges and usually solves the match.
Chelsea (+190) started a victorious streak in the UCL finals against Man City, and after that posted six wins and two draws, one of them ending victoriously for Tuchel’s guys. It was the UEFA Super Cup, once they reached the trophy after defeating Villarreal on penalties.
The Blues were better than Crystal Palace at home in the opening match of the EPL season, 3-0, and after that, they would routinely dispatch Arsenal at Emirates, 0-2, in a contest that was a one-sided display of the guests’ power.
Tuchel didn’t allow his defenders to slow down, and his backline was more than confident in the opening two matches. After having mixed performances during the preseason, they would switch back to the competitive mode, shutting down the rivals without any problems.
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Fabinho is out for personal reasons, James Milner is injured, and Oxlade-Chamberlain is long gone from the protocol.
On the other side, Christian Pulisic won’t play due to COVID-19 infection, the same as Ruben Loftus-Cheek.
Head to Head Matches
So far, the Reds and the Blues have played 188 matches. Liverpool has 82 wins, Chelsea 65 and 41 games ended with a draw.
The last one was in March this year, and Chelsea won at Anfield, 0-1. The first leg finished 0-2 for the Reds at Stamford.
Prediction
There won’t be too many goals here because Tuchel comes to Anfield to get one point, hopefully, three, if something comes up in front of Alisson’s goal. Due to this, betting on under 2.5 scores is the best solution here, with the current odds set at -110. Klopp won’t be too eager to try to crack Chelsea, as he knows that such an approach might backfire.
Pick: Under 2.5 goals -110
Nikola Velickovic is a sports journalist who loves to write and read on all sports. Nikola contributes both news updates and functions as a sports breaking news writer at WagerBop.
Email: nikola@wagerbop.com
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