Chelsea vs Liverpool – Match Preview

We face Liverpool tomorrow night and the best birthday present the team can give Jose Mourinho is a win in the semi-final second leg clash against the reds.

Team Selection

I expect Chelsea to throw everything at Liverpool and field our strongest 11,  we will see Costa lead the attack backed by Hazard, Oscar and the enterprising Willian.

We should also expect Matic and Fabregas to sit in front of the back 4 and Fabregas assuming a free role to join in the attack whenever the opportunity presents itself.

Our back four will most likely consist of Ivanovich, Cahill, Terry, and Cesar Azpilicueta.

Thibaut Courtois will reclaim his number 1 spot and keep goal for this clash.

Chelsea having enough in the tank to face Manchester City is another issue because I expect this starting 11 to also start when we face Manchester City over the weekend. This sentiment was confirmed by MourinhoÂ’s recent statement.

“‘I’m happy to go (until the end of the season with the same squad),’ he said. ‘This is Chelsea, always thinking and being proud of thinking about numbers and Financial Fair Play.”

I feel Chelsea made a major mistake on Saturday, maybe our squad players where not getting enough game time but a few managed to impress when given the opportunity.

This has raised the speculation time and time again over this January transfer window that the likes of Salah and Andre Schurrle are probably on their way out. But from the Managers statements they could stay but get very little game time.

“We cannot now go to the market and spend money. So I’m completely with the club. I share this idea, I share this profile. I don’t think we are going to the market, unless somebody comes and makes a market which meets with us.”

Tactics

It will be interesting to see if Brendan Rodgers decides to stick with a 3 at the back with wingbacks and congest the midfield, or switch to a back 4.

I am hoping to see Chelsea find their way through a sea of red whenever we recover the ball in defence this time, and I believe Fabregas like the biblical Moses is equipped with the skills to part the red sea in transition.

Another key player to look out for in this encounter is Oscar back in his usual number 10 role, the Brazilian has taken his game to a new level; I love his confidence in striking the ball with both the inside and outside of his boot from anywhere.

ItÂ’s been heart breaking watching great attempts go agonisingly wide or hitting the post this season but on occasions he has got it right we have seen great goals from the Brazilian.

Conclusion

I donÂ’t expect to see a poor performance from Chelsea this time and the one way traffic we witnessed in the first leg, because of this tactical change we are likely to see.

My prediction is the total annihilation of Liverpool, they are no match for our wounded lions.

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