It’s fair to say that Chelsea at Anfield has several unhappy memories for Liverpool fans in recent times. The heartbreak of 2013-14 followed a Luis Suarez bite the previous season, which would have serious repercussions. Here I spoke to Declan McCarthy, of Radio Woking. You can follow him on twitter here- @Dec11mcc
Everyone knows that this is going to be a difficult game for The Reds, but can you tell us about the main dangers Chelsea can pose to Liverpool on Saturday, and who you think the real danger-men for your side are?
Well it’s going to be a tough game for both sides, let alone just a tough test for the Reds. Anfield is always a place we find tricky to go to and with the likes of Gerrard, Henderson and Sterling all looking to start Saturday it could be a midfield battle, and this without doubt is the strongest part of the Chelsea team going forward with the likes of Cesc, Eden and Oscar, with brilliant depth in replacements such as Wilian coming off the bench who has really been impressive this season. Defensively in the midfield we have Matic, who is by far one of the most underrated players in the league let alone the team itself, and then of course we have Diego Costa, who looks to be starting and will pose a great threat as he loves to bully defenders and with Liverpool having defensive issues at the moment, Costa will capitalise on that.
It’s difficult to pick any sort of weakness in your squad, do you feel you have any weak points that could potentially be exploited?
It’s difficult to answer this question. We have a very strong squad with consistent players who give there all. I personally think it’s what Liverpool do on the day that will show signs of weakness in the Chelsea team. The person who has the potential to do damage is Raheem Sterling, he needs to attack Chelsea and not let us settle, because once we get into our rhythm of play, we are very hard to break down and play against. But if I had to say one weakness it would definitely be when we score! We like to sit deep as soon as we score, which in turn gives the opposition more time on the ball and it has caught us out in the past (Like at City)
What are your views on whispers of a potential unbeaten season in the league for Chelsea- is it possible?
I think it’s possible, why not!? We have the best manager in the league, one of the strongest teams in the league. But we have to be level headed at the same time. We will take game by game and also the Champions League knockout stages is coming up soon and so focus will be on them too. So it’s only going to get more difficult to keep both cup campaigns up.
With your squad looking formidable, what sort of success do you expect to end up with come the end of the season?
Jose set out a target to get 4 trophies this season, but with the demand of the game nowadays, I think it’s very difficult to do. I would be happy with securing the title, semi-final/final in the Champion’s league and winning the FA Cup and league cup. But without a doubt Champions league and the title would be a priority.
The corresponding fixture last year was one of heartbreak for Liverpool fans- do you expect your side to be more attacking on Saturday, given your form?
Yes, I expect a different game plan, we are a different team to last season, we went to Anfield last year with a game plan and it worked brilliantly, we got three points and that’s all we wanted. I expect he will go into the game more positive with Costa starting and the attacking threats around him. So I am expecting a more exciting game, when it comes to end-to-end stuff.
When looking at the current Liverpool squad, who do you feel poses your side the most threat on Saturday?
Sterling. His pace and attacking mind-set is fantastic, we really rate him down here in London. Liverpool’s problem is not having Daniel Sturridge due to injury, as he would have been a different threat and plays the same game as Sterling. But Raheem is someone who poses the greatest threat in my opinion, possibly Balotelli but I feel Chelsea’s defence has enough to keep him quiet for 90 minutes.
He probably won’t play on Saturday due to injury, but what are your thoughts on Daniel Sturridge’s career trajectory since he left Chelsea?
Well you just have to simply say, what a move! He’s been brilliant, but he was never going to get into the Chelsea team as we didn’t look at him as a number 1 striker and that was his problem, he wanted to be the man everyone loves and worships and that is what Liverpool fans gave him. Last season he was brilliant and I expect the same when he returns from injury.
Finally, can we get a score prediction from you?
I’m going to go for a Chelsea win. 2-1 is my prediction as I feel Liverpool are not playing great and Chelsea will go into this game with the right game plan and come away with three points, with the help of Costa, so I do expect goals.
It’s hard to see past a Chelsea win today, but as an optimist and a Liverpool fan I’ll try. I would love us be the team to end Mourinho’s potential unbeaten season. Whether we will remains to be seen, but if we do it’ll be in a 2-1 narrow victory.
