Familiar foes clash at Stamford Bridge on Sunday as Chelsea face Liverpool, just a week after securing the Premier League title. A touch of irony as it was Chelsea's 2-0 win over Liverpool near the end of last season which had a huge say in the title race and now, it will be Liverpool who give the guard of honour to this season's winners.
Team News:
Chelsea:
Jose Mourinho gave his players three days off after sealing the Premier League title against Crystal Palace last Sunday. Returning to training on Thursday was Diego Costa as he aims to make a return to the Chelsea squad. Mourinho told the media: "I will protect him all the way but he wants to play, so let's find a balance between the risk and the desire to play and try to score a couple of goals." The Blues will be without Brazilian creative midfielder Oscar, who is nursing a thigh problem, and Ramires who fell ill last weekend with a rumoured kidney problem. With the title already wrapped up, we could see a few youth players come into the side for first-team debuts.
Liverpool:
Liverpool head into the meeting with a glimmer of hope in catching Manchester United in fourth but will need a lot to go in their favour. Mario Balotelli, who has failed to live up to his £16million pound price tag from Serie A side AC Milan last summer, was involved in training on Thursday and looks to have recovered from an ankle injury. Mamadou Sakho will miss out alongside Jon Flanagan and Daniel Sturridge, the latter of which has been ruled out for four months after successful hip surgery in America earlier this week. A huge game for both sides, Rodgers told reporters: "We're going into the game at the weekend looking to win."
Background:
Chelsea ran out 2-1 victors at Anfield earlier this season thanks to goals from Gary Cahill and Diego Costa.
Mourinho's side also beat the Reds over two legs to reach the Capital One Cup Final, which they went on to win with a comfortable victory over London rivals Tottenham Hotspur at the start of March. The game did spell controversy as Costa was later suspended for three matches, after a deliberate stamp on Emre Can near the byline during the game.
In 19 games against Jose Mourinho's sides, Liverpool have won just five.
Prediction:
One thing we all know about Jose Mourinho is that he doesn't like to lose. Furthermore, he especially doesn't want to lose to a rival so expect the Blues boss to field a strong side and go for the win to further prove why they are the Premier League champions. Maybe the odd youth player here or there but do not expect Mourinho to let this one slide. Chelsea 2-0 Liverpool.