Chelsea v/s Liverpool: Key Battles

The weekend’s most enticing clash is Liverpool’s visit to Stamford Bridge to face a Chelsea side just a point ahead of them in the league table. This is the first time the two sides are meeting since the infamous Luis Suarez bite on Bransilav Ivanovic which resulted in the Uruguayan receiving a 10 match ban. 

In hindsight, that massive ban might have been the impetus behind his tremendous goal scoring form this season. 

Luis Suarez bit Branislav Ivanovic in the sides' last meeting at Anfield back in April this year 

 Looking forward to today's clash, both sides are within reach of the summit of the league table and a win for either sides will go a long way in establishing their credentials for the title. Currently though, Manchester City sit atop, albeit with one more game than their closest rivals, while Arsenal can also move top with victory at St. James' Park against an in form Newcastle United.

18YB, here, has a look at the key battles which could be crucial in deciding which of the two sides comes out on top, and takes the bragging rights until next time. 

Luis Suarez v/s Gary Cahill

With Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho favoring Englishmen John Terry and Gary Cahill as the preferred center back pairing, it is likely that the two will start against Liverpool. To shackle Suarez though, the two will have to be on his back for the entire duration of the game. 

Cahill, in particular will need to be quick in reading the Uruguayan's runs and considering his dribbling ability, Terry, who has lost the agility to stick along with pacy strikers, will need to use his experience to organize the defense better. 

Gary Cahill will need to be on his toes to the stop free scoring Uruguayan 

In addition to taking on Suarez alone, the pair will also have to to careful about Suarez dropping deep and linking up play with Jordan Henderson and Joe Allen, both of whom have been in a good run of form recently. Their late runs into the box and creative play has been important for Liverpool in the absence of talisman Steven Gerrard. 

Raheem Sterling and Philippe Coutinho also tend to make diagonal runs which Suarez tends to find while linking up with the midfield and here is where Cahill and Terry will have to be on hand to protect their goal. While pushing up as and when a Liverpool attack is cleared, the distance between the midfield and the center backs needs to be to a measured so that while building up from the deep, Sterling and Coutinho don't find enough space in behind the Chelsea defense. Suarez too needs to be marked by Cahill till a certain extent while dropping deep, after which John Obi Mikel will need to take on the mantel so that not a lot of space is left behind Cahill for only Terry to protect. 

Frank Lampard v/s Lucas Leiva

Moving onto the midfield, while Liverpool will, in all probabilities deploy a tried and tested 4-3-3, Chelsea should use a 4-2-3-1 shape due to the absence of Brazilian Ramires. Mikel and Lampard should start as the holding midfielders with Lampard the one supporting attacks from the deep. 

His late runs into the box should be tapped upon by Lucas Leiva who will be deployed as the lone holding midfielder for the Reds. Considering they play a narrow midfield, which makes the midfield congested, Lampard will definitely have to be at his creative best to drive attacks from the center.

Lucas Leiva and Frank Lampard go head to head in a midfield battle

The two will need to counter the three midfielders of the Reds, two of which will tend to play like box-to-box midfielders. Defensively, Mikel will have to be on his toes to help out Terry and Cahill by keeping tabs on Suarez dropping deep to link up play with Henderson and Allen to create space for the wingers to run in. 

Eden Hazard v/s Glen Johnson

As much as their strike force grabs all the attention for the wrong reasons, Belgian Eden Hazard has been a rather consistent attacker for the Blues. Alongside Oscar, Hazard has been a creative mainstay for this Chelsea side under Mourinho. 

With 7 goals and 4 assists in 17 league appearances, the former Lille man has been more effective from the left hand side as compared to Oscar, who has grabbed more attention, which perhaps is due to the man he has been keeping out of the starting eleven.

Eden Hazard will have to get past Johnson to create chances for Chelsea not to mention keep his runs in check while defending

As for today's game,  Hazard will need to keep up his good form, tracking back to help out in congesting the midfield, and running with the ball while counter attacking with pace. Against Glen Johnson, who is a rugged defender, Hazard will need to be at his best, linking up play with Azpilicueta on the left. Not only that, but he will also need to be cautious in tracking back to keep tabs on Johnson's penetrating runs to support attacks. 

However key these battles prove out to be, one thing that is sure is a cracking game of football for both sides, with Mourinho being pitched against his former disciple Brendan Rodgers. 

Written by,

Aman Arora

Aman writes and edits articles for 18YB

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