Liverpool host Chelsea on Sunday in a gathering of first-year Premier League coaches who’re off to distinctive begins with their new golf equipment.
Arne Slot’s Liverpool (6-1-0, 18 factors) enter the fixture atop the standings after successful three in a row in league play and 6 straight in all competitions.
The most important distinction between Slot’s Liverpool aspect this season and the aspect that Jurgen Klopp managed final season is a extra resolute rear guard.
Whereas Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah are off to wonderful begins, combining for 9 league targets, it is on the again line the place the Reds have received matches, conceding solely 4 targets throughout all competitions (10 matches).
Final season, Klopp’s group yielded that many tallies in its first 5 matches.
“If you wish to obtain one thing, we should be steady defensively. We’ve got carried out that to date,” Slot stated. “Now we face even higher gamers. Chelsea, like (Manchester) United, have a whole lot of nice gamers and we have now to manage that as a staff, however we additionally need to create our personal possibilities, too. Good factor is we have now gamers who can rating. An fascinating recreation on Sunday.”
Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea (4-1-2, 14 factors) have achieved their early success extra by advantage of some distinctive attacking, led by the continued brilliance of Cole Palmer.
The Blues’ 16 league targets are the second most behind solely four-time defending league champion Manchester Metropolis. Palmer has scored or assisted on an unbelievable 11 of these as he makes his case for being the EPL’s greatest all-around attacker.
But fourth-place Chelsea haven’t confronted a foe as sturdy as Liverpool since falling 2-0 to Manchester Metropolis within the first match of the season. So there may very well be some temptation to say Sunday’s outcome will present how good the Blues actually are, an intuition Maresca needs to protect towards.
“We’ll strategy the sport attempting to arrange the sport in the easiest way,” Maresca stated. “And as I stated, attempt to get factors there. Nevertheless it’s not this recreation that’s going to outline the place we’re — if we win, we resolve all the issues, and in case we lose? No. It is only a course of, it is only a recreation.”
Liverpool will likely be with out goalkeeper Alisson on account of a hamstring damage.
–Discipline Stage Media
