Liverpool have a strong record of bouncing back from defeat under Arne Slot and their ability to find the scoresheet puts them in a strong position to avoid an unwanted first at Chelsea.
Liverpool have not lost back-to-back league games under Slot, and the last time the club experienced two games without points was in April 2023 after defeats to Bournemouth and Man City.
And not since April 2023 have Liverpool lost a third successive match in all competitions.
It is a record to avoid and the Reds have the ability to hit the scoreboard to make sure it doesn’t, having scored in each of their last 40 Premier League fixtures.
Moreover, Liverpool have never failed to score in successive games under Slot.
Milestones to look out for
• Liverpool need two goals to record 100 in the Premier League under Slot and one to reach 50 away from Anfield
• The next point will be Liverpool’s 100th in the league under Slot. This will be match No. 45, he will achieve the milestone in fewer games than any other previous manager in club history (Kenny Dalglish 48 games)
• Mo Salah needs two goals to bring up 250 for Liverpool in all games and one to move into outright second place on the all-time list of Liverpool scorers away from Anfield
• No player has ever scored a hat-trick for Liverpool at Stamford Bridge
• Giorgi Mamardashvili will become the 265th player to appear for Liverpool in the Premier League
Bad omens…
Liverpool have conceded three of their seven league goals this season from the 76th minute onwards.
They have also lost each of their last three league visits to the capital, at Crystal Palace last week and at Fulham and Chelsea last season.
Liverpool and Chelsea have met twice on this day previously. In 1998, the teams drew 1-1 at Anfield, with Chelsea winning at home 2-0 in 2009.
Time to turn these bad omens around!
Chelsea leave door ajar
Chelsea suffered their first home league defeat of the calendar year last Saturday after a run of 12 undefeated – nine wins, three draws.
They have now not won in their last three league games since a 2-0 home win over Fulham. And their clean sheet in the 1-0 win over Benfica on Tuesday was their first in six matches.
The Blues have conceded at last twice in each of the last three league games, as many as they had done in the 15 matches prior to that.
This season’s scorers
Chelsea: Fernandez 3, Caicedo 2, Joao Pedro 2, Chalobah 2, Palmer 2, Buonanotte 1, George 1, Neto 1, own goals 1
Liverpool: Ekitike 5, Salah 3, Chiesa 2, Gravenberch 2, Frimpong 1, Gakpo 1, Isak 1, Ngumoha 1, Robertson 1, Szoboszlai 1, Van Dijk 1
* Stats courtesy of LFC statistician Ged Rea (@ged0407).