There are some games of football that even neutral fans should be looking forward to. This season Liverpool v Chelsea should be on that list.
Two of the best sides in the league are being pitted against each other and Liverpool really need to win if they harbor any hopes of winning the Premier League this season. If Liverpool loses then barring some kind of complete breakdown at Chelsea, then you might as well give the Blues the title now.
This match sees the best Premier League attack take on the strongest Premier League defense along with a clash of styles. We’re likely to see Conte’s three at the back being subjected to the Liverpool press and with Chelsea already buckling under Tottenham’s pressing game this season there is the risk that they could drop more points.
Liverpool does run the risk of effectively being out of 3 competitions within a week. Their loss to Southampton was bad but not a complete disaster. After all, I’m sure the League Cup was 4th on their list of priorities this season (win the league, qualify for the Champions League, win the FA Cup and then win the League Cup).
Chelsea, on the other hand, could well find that a win here gives them, even more, breathing space and the free reign that could let them challenge for the FA Cup as well.
One thing is for certain, the Liverpool side that steps onto the pitch against Chelsea will be quite different from the one that Wolves or Southampton started against. Unfortunately for them, so will Chelsea’s.
The Blues made 9 changes to the side that beat Hull 2:0 for the game against Brentford. Expect many of those changes to be reversed as Hazard, Matic, Diego Costa and others all return for the bread and butter of the league.
So, with 2 strong sides playing very different styles of football, what are the best betting options for this game?
First of all, there is the Match Odds market and I must admit I’m finding the odds of 3.01 (Pinnacle) for a Chelsea win hard to ignore. As the more in-form side, I think it’s hard to bet against them and those odds are great.
Another option is Both Teams To Score and whilst the “Yes” does look reasonable at 1.8 with Bet365 it’s a market I think it’s best to stay out of. Yes, both teams did score in their previous league match but Chelsea wasn\’t in the kind of irresistible form that they are now showing. I’d actually be leaning more towards “No” at 2.15 with BetVictor if I was going to bet on this market at all.
The same thinking leads me to rule out anything on the Over/Under 2.5 goals market. I think we’ll see 2 goals, I really think 3 could be a stretch.
So I’m just sticking with my match odds bet and that’s enough to keep me happy. If it wins of course.
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