Liverpool's Sunday English Premier League resurgence represents the first stroke of bad luck that's befallen league-leading Chelsea. No, Chelsea didn't deserve better than the 2-0 loss they were handed at Anfield Park. The bad luck comes in the timing of Liverpool's awakening. Whereas the league's three other title contenders got to face a struggling Liverpool, Chelsea's first fixture against the Reds came right as Roy Hodgson's charge is awakening.
English Premier League: Chelsea Weaknesses Exposed By Liverpool’s Individual Brilliance
While Liverpool’s Sunday effort would have beaten any team in the Premier League, Chelsea’s shortcomings were still on display at Anfield.
Effect On The Title Race
Liverpool has now face each of the English Premier League's top four teams, with Sunday's victory over Chelsea their only win:
| Date | Opponent | Final |
|---|---|---|
| 8/15 | Arsenal | 1-1 |
| 8/23 | at Manchester City | 0-3 |
| 10/19 | at Manchester United | 2-3 |
| 11/7 | Chelsea | 2-0 |
Had this fixture come two weeks ago, Chelsea would have been as successful against Liverpool as Manchester City, Manchester United and (to a lesser extent) Arsenal. If the teams’ first meeting was at Stamford Bridge instead of Anfield, perhaps the Reds fail to maintain their early match momentum in front of a hostile crowd. And if this meeting had come one match day later, Chelsea would have been warned of Liverpool’s revival. But Chelsea drew a short straw, having to be the benchmark against whom a new Liverpool was measured.
This isn’t a matter of the schedule evening out. Chelsea’s had an epically easy fixture list to start the season, something that will naturally even-out was the season progresses. Catching teams at the right time is a completely different, very real factor.
Watching Liverpool on Sunday, there’s little question the Reds squad that faced the Blues was markedly better than the one that lost at Old Trafford. Manchester United’s gotten three points from a Liverpool team that was markedly worst than the one that faced Chelsea. Whereas this season looks more-and-more to be another Chelsea-United race, Liverpool’s change in quality has subtly benefited their North West rivals.
That benefit came through a number of stand-out efforts (not the least of which, Fernando Torres's), but for all the great performances Liverpool received on Sunday, Chelsea's loss is also owed to their own shortcomings. You rarely see this type of turnaround - a complete reversal from Liverpool's feebleness last weekend at the Reebok - without both teams contributing. Chelsea's defensive errors, non-existent midfield and lack of depth all promoted Liverpool's result.
The most alarming of those problems is the defense, though how much can you can separate the Blues’ faults from a remarkable performance by Torres? Both of the Spaniard’s goals were sublime. Yet, each was preventable.
On the first, when Dirk Kuyt floated that perfect pass 30 yards on a diagonal, dropping it onto Torres's foot 12 yards out, just to the right of goal, would another center back have been able to react to the play faster and better than John Terry? And why was Kuyt given that much time on the ball?
On the second goal, how does Torres get isolated against Branislav Ivanovic and not face Alex when he cuts onto his right foot? Why was Raul Meireles allowed to build up that head of steam as he entered the final third? The result was Torres having enough room to put a Pro Evo shot inside Petr Cech's far post.
If Fernando Torres as an accomplice to both goals, the midfield was a co-conspirator. You would say the trio of John Obi Mikel, Ramires and Yuri Zhirkov disappeared had they ever showed up. Without resistance from those three, Steven Gerrard, largely ineffective throughout this season, teamed with Lucas Leiva to control the match.
Neither Michael Essien nor Frank Lampard would have allowed that pair to be as effective, but even without their two best midfielders, Chelsea should have done better. Somebody should have pressured Kuyt. Somebody should have stopped Meireles. In hindsight, it seems hard to believe a Ramires and Zhirkov tandem would work in a big match. Florent Malouda should have been asked to play a deeper role.
The need for such a change - potentially moving your leading goal scorer deeper on the pitch - highlights a Chelsea weakness that was evident at season’s start. Then, there was debate as to whether Carlo Ancelotti should return to the four man, diamond midfield. The answer was clear. It made little sense for a team that played better in a 4-3-3 to go with a four man midfield, particularly when they lacked meaningful depth at that level. How could Chelsea expect to consistently play a four man midfield, particularly given Essien’s health? Now less than one-third of the way through the season, Chelsea lacks the depth to fill even a three man unit.
For perspective's sake, note how many Liverpool players had to have excellent matches for the Reds to get this result. Of Roy Hodgson's 11 starters, only Paul Konchesky and Maxi Rodriguez would have graded out at average or below. Torres was this week's best player, with first half partner Dirk Kuyt experiencing a rousing return. Raul Meireles was Gerrard and Lucas's equal in midfield, while confident efforts from Jamie Carragher and Martin Skrtel were complimented by an impressive start at right back for Martin Kelly. Even had Chelsea been in-form, the efforts of those seven players may have still sent the Blues to a defeat.
If you're a Chelsea fan, you have to wonder what would have happened had Carlo Ancelotti managed his resources better. For various reasons, Didier Drogba and José Bosingwa were started on the bench. With each appearing in the second half, it's unlikely health was the only reason why they were left out of the starting XI. Instead, this looks like Ancelotti was compensating for a thin squad: Resting two players against a perceived weaker opponent, keeping in mind the inevitable build-up of fixtures. If that's the case, Ancelotti got his selection wrong, particularly considering he has Fulham at home mid-week.
Still, Ancelotti has an excuse. Nobody could have anticipated Liverpool would be this good.
See More:
