EFL Cup 2018-19 – Liverpool vs Chelsea Betting Preview
We have part 1 between Liverpool and Chelsea this week and this is a Carabao Cup match at Anfield! Liverpool have been perfect while Chelsea have been near perfect to start the season. In this match we can expect both sides to use backup players, however this is still anticipated to be a very good match between the two. It for sure is the top match of this round in the Carabao Cup!
Key Facts
Liverpool have made the best start ever to a season in their history winning their first 7 matches.
Liverpool are winless against Chelsea at Anfield in 7 straight!
Last 4 meetings between these clubs at Anfield all ended in a 1-1 draw.
Liverpool have not scored in 3 straight Carabao Cup matches.
Liverpool are unbeaten at Anfield in 14 straight matches in all competitions
Liverpool are yet to concede at Anfield against English opposition this season.
Liverpool and Chelsea are tied for 2nd highest scoring teams in England
Chelsea have not lost in the 3rd round of Carabao Cup since 2010.
Chelsea have improved defensively keeping back to back clean sheets and 3 in their last 4 games.
The last time that these sides met in this competition, Chelsea beat Liverpool in the semi final in 2015. Drawing 1-1 at Anfield and winning 1-0 at home. This years tie however won’t have a 2nd leg.
Team News
Liverpool: Van Dijk picked up a knock during the weekend’s match against Southampton and is likely to sit out this match, he’d probably sit out anyway given that Saturday’s match up is much more important. Dejan Lovren has returned to training and could start unless Klopp elects to go with Gomez and Matip. Moreno, Mignolet and Clyne are all expected to make their first starts too. Also Fabinho will more than likely feature. Naby Keita, Sturridge and Shaqiri are all expected to start. Lallana is a doubt and Origi is out. The likes of Mane, Firmino, Salah, Milner, Henderson, well 1st teamers will either be left out completely or sit on the bench. This is a match where rotation will happen for Liverpool. We could see a completely different starting 11 from the one against Southampton due to it being a carabao cup which Klopp won’t prioritise.
Chelsea: Well, we expect rotation from Sarri too, but we’re not as sure if he’ll do it considering the team he fielded at PAOK last week when everyone thought it’d be fully rotated but a lot of 1st team players featured. We should really expect Sarri to use youngsters like Ampadu, Christensen and Hudson-Odoi who are all very impressive. We’ll probably see Willian and Morata up front since they don’t really have anyone else there, Giroud is 1st team and they don’t have a replacement for Willian given that Pedro is injured. Rudiger and Loftus-Cheek are out with injuries which is a huge blow for the latter as he would’ve featured in this game for sure. Expect a completely different midfield with Barkley, Drinkwater, Fabregas all itching to get a start. We should really expect Chelsea to use the same mindset as Liverpool for this match, a lot of rotation so the 1st team players can be ready for the bigger game on Saturday against the same Liverpool team.
Betting Tips and Predictions
This match is tough to predict because it’s second teams. We don’t really know which team will take this match more seriously and on paper we’d expect Chelsea to look at this match more seriously given that Liverpool’s focus is fully on the League and the UCL right now, but because Liverpool are at Anfield it’s risky. Goals over doesn’t seem to hold much value, both teams aren’t bad defensively and without the likes of Salah Mane Firmino Hazard playing goal scoring will be a lot tougher for both sides, plus let’s not forget that the previous 4 matches at Anfield between the two ended with 1-1 draws meaning under 2.5 is a common thing when these meet at Anfield. Under 2.5 goals is priced at 2.15. This is a type of game which is just better of being avoided betting wise unless you find something with a very high odds. A draw at 4.00 is a good high odds bets because that seems like a very realistic scenario. Our prediction is 1-1 draw and this to be decided on penalties.
Match Odds (TonyBet)
Liverpool Win – 1.82
Draw – 4.00
Chelsea Win – 3.90
KICK OFF – 26th September 2018 – 7:45pm UK Time
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