Liverpool and Chelsea put on a show at Anfield on Sunday as two Premier League heavyweights showcased their quality, and the hosts edged their way to victory.
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Mohamed Salah and Curtis Jones scored to keep Arne Slot’s side top of the Premier League, as Nicolas Jackson briefly had a lively Chelsea side level.
Below is a look at what we learned from an intriguing tactical battle between Liverpool and Chelsea.
Jones underlines his potential
At 23 years of age now is the time for Curtis Jones to kick and deliver consistently in the Premier League. The Liverpool academy product has been unlucky with injuries in his career so far but on Sunday he was everywhere. He popped up and won two penalties in the first half (one of which stood), blocked twice at a pivotal moment to deny Cole Palmer at the other end and scored the winner with a fine touch and finish. When we think of Liverpool’s midfield we praise the new influence of Gravenberch and the quality of Mac Alliser and Szoboszlai but Jones often gets left out of the conversation. His performance on Sunday was one of a true box-to-box midfielder, who kept Palmer pretty quiet, and if Jones can stay injury free then Liverpool have their replacement for Jordan Henderson. It has taken Jones a few seasons longer than most though to get to this stage, but he is finally a genuine starter. The next step? Staying fit and impacting games in a big way consistently.
Chelsea’s shaky defense missed Fofana, Cucurella
They lost, but Chelsea did plenty of good things at Liverpool and had they drawn there would have been minimal complaints from the hosts. Moises Caicedo was superb in midfield, Jackson led the line well and the likes of Madueke, Neto and Palmer had their moments in attack. But it was in defense where Chelsea just came unstuck and looked shaky throughout. Missing the duo of Wesley Fofana and Marc Cucurella through suspension, Chelsea looked unsettled on the ball and both Colwill and Sanchez made big mistakes in the first half. The way Enzo Maresca wants to play means your defenders have to be brave on the ball and Cucurella and Fofana fit that role perfectly. Maresca subbed out Reece James and Tosin early in the second half, the former due to just coming back from injury and the latter was having a tough time standing in for Fofana. Chelsea will be right up there in the top four conversation and have come a long way in a short space of time, but defensive solidity is the area where they need to take the next step.
Another step forward, albeit a small one, for Liverpool
This was a big win for Arne Slot early in his Liverpool reign, but there is clearly still work to do before we start to call Liverpool genuine title contenders. Manchester City and Arsenal are still a step above the Reds but if they can get the balance right they will hang in there and be in the title conversation late in the season. Liverpool didn’t have total control of this game and still looked suspect defensively on the counter when Chelsea played direct to one of their wingers, but they’re on the right path. The extra control and calmness they now have was evident when they scored their second goal to go ahead as they took the sting out of the game and aside from a few desperate crosses late on, Chelsea didn’t look like equalizing. This will give Slot confidence he can deliver against the big boys and even though Liverpool were expected to win this, the face they did underlines how seamless the transition has been from Klopp to Slot. Seven wins from eight games, no matter the schedule, is a fine way to start the season. With a tough set of fixtures coming up in the Premier League and Champions League between now and January, we’re about to find out if Liverpool are much further ahead in their journey.
