Liverpool V Chelsea
Wednesday 14th August 2019 – 20:00 Kick-Off
UEFA Super Cup
Pick: Liverpool WIN
Odds: 33/50
Bookmaker: MarathonBet
 |
1 | X | 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 29/50 | 59/20 | 47/10 |
* (All betting odds displayed were correct as of August 11th 2019 at 22:20)
Preview: There is one more prize on offer in Europe before another season of continental action can commence, with Champions League winners Liverpool facing last season’s Europa League champions, Chelsea, at Vodafone Park in Istanbul, Turkey. It will also be the first men’s final of a UEFA competition to feature a female referee, with Stephanie Frappart of France officiating proceedings.
UEFA Super Cup Betting with 22Bet
Liverpool Preview – Klopp to celebrate a second trophy with The Reds?
Having already lost the English equivalent of this fixture a little over a week ago, losing on penalties to Manchester City, Liverpool will be even more determined to avoid another in what will be their sixth UEFA Super Cup appearance. The Reds have lifted the trophy on three occasions, which is a decent enough strike rate, and still remain the last side from England to do so back in 2005.
They’re here because of a 2-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur in last season’s Champions League final, with the reigning kings of Europe (six times!) short odds to overcome a Chelsea side that finished 25 points behind them in the league. Not to mention Liverpool possessing a far stronger team all round. No team kept more clean sheets during the 2018/19 Premier League, while that famous front three remain as ruthless and fearsome as ever.
Even when missing a member of their potent forward line, Liverpool are still a handful, as evidenced by their dismantling of Norwich City at the weekend without Sadio Mane in the side. A 4-1 victory was only marred by an injury sustained to goalkeeper Alisson, with Jurgen Klopp quick to rule the Brazilian out of this game meaning Adrian will deputise between the sticks. It is just as well the defence is so good, then.
Furthermore, that opening day win means eight months has passed since Salah & Co. were last beaten by an English opponent inside 90 minutes, and even that was a much-changed Liverpool side that bowed out of the FA Cup to Wolves. In the league they are currently unbeaten in 18 matches (W14 D4) and have won each of the last ten in a row.
Chelsea Preview – Lampard to win first trophy in second competitive game as coach?
The prospect of Frank Lampard winning some silverware in only his second competitive match as Chelsea manager is very much a possibility, although for that to happen his players would need to overcome several obstacles. One being the disappointment sustained at the weekend, another being a below average success rate in this fixture, while the last one is the small matter of facing an opponent of the highest quality.
This will be the club’s fourth appearance in a UEFA Super Cup, but only once before have they gone on to lift the trophy – way back in 1998. The Blues are here because they thrashed Arsenal in last season’s Europa League final, winning 4-1 in Azerbaijan, but will be missing several individuals who contributed massively to that success. There will be no Mauricio Sarri as manager to mastermind another victory, and no Eden Hazard to wreak havoc in attack, either.
The latter in particular seemed to be sorely missed on Sunday, when Chelsea were on the receiving end of a 4-0 hammering away to Manchester United. Lampard’s side enjoyed plenty of possession but struggled to create too many openings, which was compounded by some atrocious defending on occasions. A performance even remotely similar to that would almost certainly spell disaster here, against a more potent opponent.
Defeat at Old Trafford also means Chelsea have failed to win five of their last six matches in the league (W1 D4 L1), while the four goals they conceded felt like a continuation of the form displayed during pre-season when they were shipping goals at an alarming rate. The good news is N’Golo Kante should return to the starting line up, though he would appear to have his work cut out protecting this uninspiring defence.
Liverpool V Chelsea Key Facts:
- Liverpool won their tenth Premier League match in a row on Friday, beating Norwich City 4-1.
- Chelsea opened their Premier League account for 2019/20 with a heavy 4-0 defeat away to rivals Man Utd.
- In the past three seasons, there has been an equal number of wins between the two teams in all competitions (two each) as well as three draws.
Betting Summary
The one negative that springs to mind regarding Liverpool is the obvious loss of goalkeeper Alisson. A world-class defence should go some way to circumventing this problem, however. If not, there is always that fearsome front three to score enough goals to make any defensive drama almost irrelevant. The Reds can simply win football matches in a variety of ways, as evidenced by the fact they won their tenth Premier League game in a row at the weekend.
This feels a huge challenge for Chelsea, who are missing their main creative outlet from last season, as well as the first-choice defensive pairing with David Luiz departing and Antonio Rudiger still unavailable. The team also took a whack to its pride at the weekend, losing 4-0 at rivals Man Utd, and while they could come out fighting here their lack of a coherent defence is worrying.
To be honest, neither side covered themselves in glory as far as defending went on the opening weekend. Liverpool continue to look uncharacteristically shaky at the back, which would enhance the prospect of goals here. The Reds should certainly be winning this and their odds can be boosted to 7/5 with PaddyPower when adding Over 2.5 Goals to the selection.
