Chelsea Nic all 3 points

October 4th - Chelsea Vs Liverpool (Premiership)

Away days at Stamford Bridge are never simple assignments for travelling teams, and while Liverpool may feel unlucky coming away from West London pointless, Chelsea’s clinical play was key to their victory.

Pre-match talk centred on how the Liverpool defence would respond to midweek lapses in Europe. Mascherano’s selection provided the hounding, harassing element to Liverpool’s midfield; stifling opponents’ creativity, while allowing others to impact on the game in Chelsea’s final third. The Liverpool midfield battled well, showing character and tenacity to compete well with Chelsea, as Lucas focussed on the game, and kept Lampard et al with little possession.

The Argentinean was doing a sufficient job until losing possession on the hour, when easy passes were available, which presented Chelsea with the opportunity to break. Drogba’s strength gave his the time and space to find his strike partner Anelka, who converted easily, and at one nil down Liverpool’s task was all the more challenging.

Terry was winning his duel with Torres, bullying El Nino, not allowing the Spaniard the space which he has exploited so well in previous games this season. Unwanted frustration began to creep into Torres’ performance, which as a Liverpool fan you don’t want to see. This may seem harsh, but Torres would be much more proactive if he refrained from such antics, maintaining discipline and channelling his efforts into harrowing defenders with his blistering pace and deadly finishing abilities.

In stark contrast, Chelsea’s strike-force was far more productive then the visitors. Anelka and Drogba have complemented one another well under Ancelotti; something previous Chelsea managers had struggled with, and increased their combined league total to 9 goals following today’s performance. This could work out to be the final missing piece in Chelsea’s championship winning season.

The difference between the sides was Chelsea’s ability in ruthlessly converting their chances, as Benayoun was unfortunate late on and Gerrard was foiled by a fine save from Hilario, the stand-in Chelsea keeper. An injury time winner sealed the points for the home team, as Drogba once again displayed his aggressive and strength, and Malouda gladly scored from close range. We didn’t have lady luck on our side, hopefully by mid May luck will be more equally dispersed; injury time will have been balanced out amongst all top flight teams, and tight games like this will go Liverpool’s way.