Liverpool vs Chelsea LIVE: Premier League result and reaction as Curtis Jones sends Reds back to the top
Liverpool 2-1 Chelsea: The Reds return to the top of the table after they take a deserved three points from a tense encounter at Anfield
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Your support makes all the difference.Liverpool beat Chelsea 2-1 at Anfield on Sunday afternoon as Arne Slot’s side returned to the top of the Premier League table.
An end-to-end first half failed to create any real chances of note before Curtis Jones produced a brilliant block on Cole Palmer, and then raced into the Chelsea box to win a penalty.
Salah converted from the spot and Liverpool were in the ascendancy from there, with Cody Gakpo having a goal ruled out before half-time.
The second half started in a similarly frantic fashion, though Chelsea landed the first blow, equakising quickly after Nicolas Jackson latched onto a brilliant through ball from Moises Caicedo.
But parity was short-lived, as Curtis Jones got to the end of a Salah cross to poke past Sanchez for 2-1 in the 51st minute.
The rest of the half was far less eventful, with neither side managing to fashion a chance of note before seven minutes were added on.
The home side looked to close out the game as the Blues tried to mount some final attacks, and the Reds’ defence stood firm to confirm the three points.
Follow all the Premier League action with our live blog below:
Chelsea cannot rely on Cole Palmer to solve all problems – Enzo Maresca
Enzo Maresca warned his Chelsea players they cannot rely on Cole Palmer to “solve all our problems” as they prepare for a gruelling run of Premier League fixtures, beginning with Sunday’s meeting with Liverpool.
Following the game at Anfield, in which the head coach will be without suspended pair Marc Cucurella and Wesley Fofana in defence, the Blues play Newcastle at home before travelling to Old Trafford to face Manchester United.
Arsenal then visit Stamford Bridge to round off a three-week spell in which the potential in evidence during Maresca’s first seven games will receive a thorough inspection, with the team’s top-four credentials put to the test.
Chelsea cannot rely on Cole Palmer to solve all problems – Enzo Maresca
Chelsea sit fourth in the league and Palmer has been key to their fine start.
Liverpool vs Chelsea head-to-head
These two sides have met a total of 190 times, with meetings dating back to Christmas Day in 1907.
As ist stands, Liverpool have won 90, with Chelsea winning 61. 49 have ended as draws.
As alluded to earlier, the two teams have had a range of high-profile meetings, from Champions League semi-finals to last season’s Carabao cup final, which Liverpool won 1-0.
In the league last season, the two sides drew 1-1 at Stamford Bridge in their league opener, while Liverpool won the return fixture 4-1 in January.
What Liverpool’s brutal seven-game run will reveal about their season under Arne Slot
The best beginning to a reign made by any Liverpool manager is only a start. Arne Slot has found ways of deflecting the compliments his immediate impact at Anfield has generated. He has referenced the reality that some of his predecessors’ medal collections are sufficiently impressive that they do not need to be judged by their first 10 games or an early-season status as league leaders. He has cited the relatively kind fixture list: Liverpool have played the teams currently occupying 17th, 11th, 14th, 10th, 13th, 20th and 18th places. Their Carabao Cup win was against the club in 12th. Their Champions League victories were against the sides sitting sixth and 13th respectively in Serie A.
And now it gets harder. Liverpool’s next month amounts to a barometer of their prospects, a test of whether they are title challengers, potential Champions League winners, able to retain the Carabao Cup that proved Jurgen Klopp’s last trophy. It is Chelsea, RB Leipzig, Arsenal, Brighton, Brighton again, Bayer Leverkusen and Aston Villa, a seven-game stretch that could derail Liverpool’s ambitions or serve as a springboard to a challenge on multiple fronts.
For Slot, it amounts to a voyage of discovery. Have his first 10 games given him a clear idea of what Liverpool can achieve or is he still trying to find out himself?
What Liverpool’s brutal seven-game run will reveal about their season
Even the manager isn’t sure whether Liverpool can cope with the relentless churn of Premier League, Champions League and Carabao Cup fixtures on the horizon
Liverpool v Chelsea - the tale of a recent English ‘rivalry’
Around 220 miles separate Anfield and Stamford Bridge, but despite the distance between theses two clubs, they have played out one of English football’s most intriguing rivalries since the early 2000s.
By the time Roman Abramovich took over the Blues in 2003, the historic gap between the two clubs had closed, with Liverpool remaining a force despite their inability to challenge for titles. But the Blues soon took them over, with the hiring of Jose Mourinho kickstarting a golden era.
And (despite a 3-2 Chelsea win in that year’s League Cup final) the rivalry between the two clubs can perhaps be traced to a match that was key in one of Liverpool’s most famous successes – their 2005 Champions League win.
Luis Garcia’s ghost goal at Anfield in the second leg of the semi-final won the tie for the Reds, and marked the first in a run of high-octane, high quality matches between the two sides, including another Liverpool win (this one on penalties) in the Champions League semi-finals in 2006/07, a 4-3 aggregate win for Chelsea in the 2007/08 semi-finals and a 7-5 aggregate win (including a 4-4 at Stamford Bridge) for Chelsea in the 2008/09 quarter-finals.
Since 2003, the two clubs have also met in two FA Cup finals and three League Cup finals.
Will Liverpool beat the Blues?
Liverpool are seeking a third successive win over Chelsea in all competitions for the first time since November 2011, when they recorded a sequence of four.
Victory this weekend would also see Liverpool record a 50th Anfield success over Chelsea in league football, while their next goal will be their 250th in all league encounters against the Londoners.
Liverpool vs Chelsea team changes
Arne Slot makes three changes to the Liverpool team that defeated Crystal Palace 1-0 in their final match before the international break.
Alisson is injured so Caoimhin Kelleher will be in goal while Andy Robertson takes up his place at left-back ahead of Kostas Tsimikas. Further up the pitch, Alexis Mac Allister is replaced with Dominik Szoboszlai.
For Chelsea, the big news is that captain and right-back Reece James returns! The defender has recovered from a long-term injury to take his place in the starting line-up.
Elsewhere, Enzo Fernandez, Wesley Fofana and Marc Cucurella drop out with Tosin Adarabioyo and Romeo Lavia brought back in.
Liverpool vs Chelsea line-ups
Liverpool XI: Kelleher; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Szoboszlai, Gravenberch, Jones; Salah, Jota, Gakpo
Chelsea XI: Sanchez; James, Tosin, Colwill, Gusto; Lavia, Caicedo; Madueke, Palmer, Sancho; Jackson
Team news
A reminder of the early team news – we’re around five minutes away from knowing the line-ups.
Liverpool will be without Alisson, while Harvey Elliott continues to recover from a fractured foot. Federico Chiesa could be available after recovering from an unspecified injury which ruled him out of Italy’s internationals.
Marc Cucurella and Wesley Fofana are suspended, though Reece James is back in training after a period out with a hamstring injury.
Reece James injury latest after Enzo Maresca provides update on Chelsea star’s return
Reece James is fit to return for Chelsea against Liverpool after his latest injury with Enzo Maresca revealing a new plan to ensure the right-back remains fit.
James has not featured for the Blues this season after sustaining another hamstring issue.
But after training with the group over the international break, Maresca can call on the 24-year-old for the trip to Anfield.
Chelsea handed boost as Enzo Maresca provides Reece James injury update
The England international could make his first appearance of the season against Liverpool on Sunday
Liverpool vs Chelsea team news: Alisson injury blow for Reds as Reece James nears Blues return
Chelsea travel to face Liverpool as Premier League football returns following the international break, but the Reds have been handed an injury blow ahead of the weekend.
Alisson is set to remain on the sidelines for the clash against Chelsea after sustaining a hamstring injury against Crystal Palace.
Caoimhin Kelleher will deputise in goal, with Arne Slot confirming the Brazil remains out for a “couple of weeks” due to the problem.
Reece James has trained over the international break and will be in the squad on Sunday, while Maresca must contend without suspended duo Wesley Fofana and Marc Cucurella.
Liverpool vs Chelsea team news: Alisson injury blow for Reds as James nears return
James has not been fit enough to play any matches for Chelsea this season
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