Chelsea v Liverpool: League Leaders Face Examination Against Lampard’s New Look Blues

The world of football was always prepared to take a second glance at what would transpire this season at Stamford Bridge. Not only to see how emerging manager, and former star player, Frank Lampard would begin his career in the Premier League, but with Chelsea’s transfer embargo over the summer, it has forced Lampard’s hand to blood youth from their outstanding youth setup.

The Blues’ results – barring the 4-0 defeat at Old Trafford on opening day have been solid and none more so that their 5-2 away win at Wolverhampton last Saturday. Sunday sees a stern test for Chelsea, with the visit of league leaders Liverpool – kick: off 16:30 BST. The Reds are flying in the Premier League so far with five wins and already lead the chasing pack by five points.

Both teams will enter this game on the back of a midweek Champions League defeat. Chelsea suffered a 1-0 home loss to Valencia, which included a late penalty miss by Ross Barkley, while Liverpool were defeated 2-0 at Napoli. This game is an obvious chance for both teams to get back on the winning track, but who will come out on top? Please read on for our thoughts on this eagerly anticipated clash.

Date: September 22, 2019

Match Odds

Although Chelsea are the home side for this game, it is Liverpool who are the strong favourites to claim all three points on Sunday afternoon. The Reds have been in scintillating form in periods of games so far this season in the Premier League, and Jurgen Klopp’s side can be backed at the best industry price at the time of writing of even money (1/1) with Betway amongst others to maintain their advantage at the top, or move even further clear.

The home side can be taken at the top price of 14/5 to gain their first league win at Stamford Bridge this season with Unibet and 888Sport, while a stalemate is also available at 14/5 and that best odds punt can be taken once again with Unibet.

From a trends angle, there is not too much to split between these teams. The last seven Premier League meetings between the two sides has seen two wins for Chelsea, two wins for Liverpool and three draws. Liverpool do have the greater experience within their squad though, and I expect this to be the telling factor, in a very entertaining contest.

Individual Goal Scorers

Liverpool’s feared attacking triumvirate of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane are very likely to be unleashed at Stamford Bridge, and it will be very interesting to see how the Chelsea rear guard – that could include England under-21 star, Fikayo Tomori cope.

Salah is a best priced 22/5 chance with Unibet and 888Sport to open the scoring, while Mane is a 5/1 shot with the same firms. There could be some value in taking Roberto Firmino is this game, as the Brazilian striker is potentially overpriced with the bookmakers in relation to his striking team mates at 6/1 with SportPesa and 10Bet.

Chelsea’s emerging striking star, Tammy Abraham is their first entry into the First Goalscorer betting at 13/2 with SportPesa and 10Bet. The England striker has scored seven Premier League goals already and his rise in the game would be accentuated by opening the scoring here.

Abraham’s emergence has coincided with Mason Mount’s rise to prominence and the former Derby loanee can be backed at 9/1 with SportingBet. A note of caution for Mount backers is that he is an injury concern for the game, so a check on the teams before placing a bet could be a sensible move.

Others to consider include Chelsea’s Brazilian attacker, Willian, who is a standout price of 12/1 with Betway, if Lampard decides to select the former Shakhtar man. Dutch international, Georginio Wijnaldum is somewhat of an unsung hero in the Liverpool engine room, but he is a player of extreme talent. The 17/1 on offer with RedZone and SportPesa for the 28-year old to score first looks to be solid value.

Two others at bigger odds would be Chelsea’s Marcos Alonso and Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk. The pair are capable of scoring key goals in big games and are of interest at 33/1 with Betway (Alonso) and 22/1 with William Hill and Ladbrokes for van Dijk respectively. A side issue to the Alonso advice is that the Spaniard is as short at 16/1 with other firms, which highlights the value.

Other Side Bets

Considering the wealth of attacking talent on show in Sunday’s game, you may expect plenty of goals to be scored, and I believe that will be the case here. My preference is to get on the OVER in the Over/Under 3.5 goals market. Unibet and 888Sport offer the best industry odds of 31/20 on over three goals in the game from both teams combined.

Of the last three Premier League matches that these two teams have participated in, there has been a total of 27 goals combined, which equates to an average of 4.5 goals per game. To get a fraction over 6/4 for over three goals looks to be excellent value for two teams who love to play their football on the front foot.

Liverpool to Win the Match and Both Teams to Score looks to be a solid bet in this game at the tempting price of 12/5 with Betway. Last season, Liverpool looked to be a much more solid proposition defensively, but there could well be gaps that Chelsea can exploit to grab a goal.

Our Correct Score offering for this game is a 3-1 win for Liverpool at full-time. My belief is that Liverpool will ultimately have too much for their London opponents in this game and can win a very entertaining contest. Betfred offer the stand-out price of 14/1 on this outcome and it is a punt worthy of a small investment.

Best Bets:

• Over 3.5 Goals in the Match at 31/20 with Unibet
• Liverpool to Win the Match and Both Teams to Score at 12/5 with Betway
• Chelsea 1-3 Liverpool Correct Score bet at 14/1 with Betfred.