Liverpool. Chelsea. Semi-finals. There is something about it that sends a shiver down the spine. Many times since Chelsea's resurgence under Russian owner Roman Abramovich have these sides done battle in knock-out competitions, most notably in the UEFA Champions League. Despite Chelsea having much more league success than Liverpool in the past decade, the cup games between the pair have been tight, hostile and have created what some may call a "modern rivalry". In this installment they face off in a Capital One Cup semi-final, vying for a place against either Sheffield United or Tottenham Hotspur in the final.
Liverpool, the hosts for Tuesday's first leg, have had a tricky season as of yet with an influx of new signings struggling to replace the Luis Suárez shaped hole left when the Uruguayan front man departed for Barcelona last summer. However as time has gone on The Reds have picked up form, with a new look 3-4-2-1 formation overseeing an upturn in form that has seen Liverpool lose just one of their last thirteen matches, in all competitions. With key figures such as Daniel Sturridge and Adam Lallana still to return, it could still be a season to remember for Liverpool if they can finish strongly.
Chelsea, on the other hand, have had no troubles with success this season and lie five points ahead of champions Manchester City in the Premier League. They've only lost two games from a possible 22 in the league, with a strong defence and stunning attack that led to manager Jose Mourinho describe Saturday's 5-0 win over Swansea as a 'perfect' performance. The blues are on course to win the title back in just Mourinho's second season and remain in the running for glory in the FA Cup, Champions League aswell as this Capital One Cup.
Diego Costa leads the golden boot race in the Premier League with 17 goals currently and he scored at Anfield in November's fixture between the two sides. The Spaniard's brutal strength combined with effective movement and sharp finishing are likely to punish Liverpool if they give him a chance. Eden Hazard is another one to look out-for, despite having a somewhat inconsistent season so far the winger has the ability to be a matchwinner on Tuesday.
Raheem Sterling is sure to be a key figure for the Reds with his pace and trickery liable to cause Chelsea's resolute defence issues. Sterling could return to the striking role he has recently been employed in, whilst the youngster could potentially continue alongside Brazilian creative midfielder Phillipe Coutinho in the slightly deeper role he played in during Liverpool's 2-0 away win against Aston Villa on Saturday. There is also the possibility that Steven Gerrard could return from a hamstring injury in a more advanced role, the skipper would be keen to avenge the demons of his infamous slip last season with a starring performance.
Team news:
For Liverpool, Steven Gerrard could return from his hamstring injury seeing Raheem Sterling move into a striker role with Gerrard behind, seeing Italian forward Fabio Borini drop to the bench. Adam Lallana and Glen Johnson are both nearing fitness following injury spells and could both make the substitutes' bench. Mario Balotelli (illness) is touch and go over making the team whilst Joe Allen's knee injury will most likely keep him out of the squad. Despite making good progress, a place in the squad may come too soon for Daniel Sturridge who is yet to come back from a long term thigh problem. Brad Jones (hip) and Jon Flanagan (knee) remain unavailable through injury. Kolo Touré is at the African Cup Of Nations with Ivory Coast.
In the Chelsea camp, it will be down to Mourinho to decide whether Thibaut Courtois comes back into the team following a minor thumb problem that has seen Petr Cech keep two cleen sheets in his absence. Didier Drogba (illness) and Cesar Azpilicueta (groin) could both be ruled out of contention. Other than that, Chelsea have a fully fit squad with no long-term injury concerns.
When they last met:
Chelsea beat Liverpool 2-1 at Anfield in early November in a game which they always looked the better side. An early Emre Can strike took a huge deflection off Gary Cahill to put Liverpool ahead however a scrappy goal from Cahill quickly levelled for the visitors. Chelsea went ahead in the second half through former Liverpool target Diego Costa, who ruthlessly drove home after under-fire goalkeeper Simon Mignolet could only parry a low Azpilicueta cross. Liverpool's performance levels have significantly improved since then, however a full strength Chelsea may still fancy their chances of a victory.
Last 5 (all competitions):
Liverpool: WWWDW
Chelsea: WWWLD
Head to head (all competitions):
Played - 161: Liverpool - 70, Drawn - 35, Chelsea - 56
Road to the semi-final:
Liverpool:
3rd Round: Liverpool 2-2 Middlesborough (Liverpool won 14-13 on pens)
4th Round: Liverpool 2-1 Swansea City
Quarter-final: AFC Bournemouth 1-3 Liverpool
Chelsea:
3rd Round: Chelsea 2-1 Bolton Wanderers
4th Round: Shrewsbury Town 1-2 Chelsea
Quarter-final: Derby County 1-3 Chelsea
Match facts:
Liverpool have not lost in the last 66 games in which they've led at half-time, winning 55 in the process.
The Reds have won a record amount of League Cups, lifting the trophy eight times.
Chelsea meanwhile, have won the competition four times in their history.
Liverpool won 2-0 at Stamford Bridge the last time these sides met in the competition with goals from Maxi Rodriguez and Martin Kelly seeing them through in November 2011.
As previously stated, Diego Costa leads the Premier League scoring charts, with 17 goals. Liverpool's top scorer in all competitions this season, is Steven Gerrard. He, has scored 9 in the 2014-15 campaign.
Comments:
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers took the opportunity to highlight the contrast between Tuesday's game and the Chelsea victory in November. Referring to his sides poor start to the season, Rodgers said: "When we last played them, we weren't in a good moment but we're developing, improving and confidence is very high."
He found praise for Saturday's goalscorers Fabio Borini and Rickie Lambert, adding - "It [Lambert's celebration] was a yellow card worth taking. You score a goal like that as a local boy...to celebrate with your own supporters and people, probably captured the spirit of the squad." On Borini, Rodgers said that he was 'very pleased' for Fabio and that he's shown a 'great personality to improve' this season.
Speaking about the game itself, Rodgers played down the importance of winning the first leg, "If we don't win the game, all is not lost as we go back there [to Stamford Bridge]. Chelsea have great quality, but they have lost a couple of games recently." The Ulsterman was keen to speak about the importance of the competition for his side, quoting "Over the last 10 years they have shown that once you win the first one [trophy] you can go on and sustain it. They tell you that the first trophy was the most important. We know if you want to win the competition you have to beat the best teams."
Jose Mourinho meanwhile took time to speak about Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard in his pre-match comments. Mourinho specifically referred to a popular song amongst Chelsea fans about Gerrard's unfortunate slip against them last season. The chant, linked to Liverpool's chant for their skipper, has become synonomous amongst terraces this season. The chant hasn't only been sung at Liverpool games, with fans of no affilation to Chelsea, Liverpool or eventual Champions Manchester City singing it. Mourinho pleaded with fans to stop, saying "Our fans have a song (about him) that I don’t like, I don’t like it at all. Maybe a couple of times it’s good fun, but to go on and go on, especially when a player like him deserves respect, I don’t think we need that. We have so many other songs that we don’t need that one.”
In what may be a slight insult to Frank Lampard, currently playing at Manchester City, Mourinho also said: “I love those quotes when Gerrard was saying that, in this life, he would never score against Liverpool." Lampard's City move has been the subject of much controversy this season, as he scored against old club Chelsea to dent their title challenge.
John Terry spoke of the momentum that these cup runs can generate, stating that Chelsea's dressing room has a strong motivation to win this competition. The former England captain said, "There's a motivation in the dressing room to win the league and push on in the Capital One Cup, Champions Leauge and FA Cup. At this stage, to still be involved in all competitions is where you want to be, and it's down to the big players to step up."