Familiar faces come up against each other for the third time this season as Chelsea head to familiar location, Wembley to take on Merseyside giants, Liverpool. The meeting which is to decide who takes home the first major trophy of the domestic season comes up this weekend and promises to deliver fireworks if any of the previous meetings of this season is anything to go by.
Coaches of both sides, Thomas Tuchel and Jurgen Klopp know each other quite well and this would be their 18th meeting with the Liverpool coach boasting of the upper hand with 9 victories to his name while Tuchel has only won on three occasions. Since Tuchel came to England with Chelsea, He has met up with Klopp on three different occasions and he’s yet to suffer a defeat against his countryman. In recent meetings, the last 5 matches between both teams sees Liverpool boast of the better record with 2 wins compared with Chelsea’s one win and 2 draws. Both draws coming this season. First a 1-1 draw at Anfield and then the most recent 2-2 enthralling draw at Stamford Bridge.
Now to the game.Liverpool’s current form showcases wins in all of their last 6 matches while Chelsea have also recorded wins in all of their last 5 matches with Chelsea’s last loss coming against Premier League run away leaders City.
With both teams high on confidence, there is little or no reason to be excited most especially as a neutral. With both coaches, attacking and entertaining football is promised and at a fully packed Wembley, there couldn’t be a better way to spend a Sunday evening. In the last meeting between both sides, Liverpool started off on the back foot but two quick fire goals both of Chelsea’s own doing saw the Reds take the lead and looking to run wild at the Bridge. That quickly changed and with Kovaciç’s spectacular volley evoking the Chelsea faithfuls onto their feet, Pulisic benefited heavily on Kante’s brilliance just like he did in the last match against Lille and he put Chelsea back on level terms before the break.
With both sides having had their fair share of injury crises in recent weeks with Chelsea in particular being victims of fatigue due to their exploits in Abu Dhabi, there is some sort of respite for both coaches after many previously injured players returned to training in recent days.That positive feeling of having key players return is sure to give both coaches the needed boast at this crucial stage of the season.
For Chelsea, the return of star defender Reece James has got many fans wondering if he could just be the joker in this final and considering how brilliant he was before his injury, there’s little or no reason for a Chelsea fan not to believe James could just be the key to defeating Liverpool on Sunday.
Tactical decisions awaiting Tuchel;As it is customary with big games, there are some of the tightest games where just the very minute of details could be the difference between a good or silver medal. The more meticulous coach often comes out on top in these sort of games and here I take a look at some of the toughest decisions awaiting Tuchel.
In Liverpool’s recent match against Leeds, the reds played an incredibly high line when facing an opportunity of a possible counter attack against Leeds with the last defender averagely just 10 yards in Liverpool’s own half. With that pattern and high line, Tuchel’s best bet would be going with Kai as the striker with the hope that his brilliant movement and new found high confidence punishes Liverpool.King Kai might just be the answer in another Final!
Another big decision awaiting Tuchel is whether to go with Kepa Arrizabalaga who has been the goalkeeper entrusted with the cup responsibilities or to start usual number one, Edou Mendy. During the FIFA club World Cup tournament, Tuchel was faced with similar headache and finally decided to opt for his trusted number one in Mendy rather than keep faith with the brilliant Kepa who deputized gallantly in the absence of Mendy. Whoever mans the post against Liverpool is sure to have a busy day at the office.
Heading to this match, Tuchel’s stated in his pre-match conference that Recce James’ form in training has been tempting and he might just be too tempted to throw him straight into action against the “Razor Sharp Liverpool attack”.Tuchel is known too always go with his head rather than mind and throwing James straight back into action might as well be one of the most difficult decisions he has to make ahead of the final due to the sort of speed Liverpool possess on the left hand side of attack. Azpilicueta being the obvious replacement of James has been left cramped-up when playing against high energy sides like Liverpool in recent weeks which is understandable due to his age. Tuchel sure has to pick between using his mind or head here!
Finally, another decision to test Tuchel’s mettle has to be what the midfield would look like against Liverpool. Rumors in circulation leading up to this match and mentioned that Tuchel intends on starting Jorginho and that means either of two things.Firstly, does Tuchel intend on dropping either of Kante or Kovaciç. Or, does he want to sacrifice one forward for more solidity in midfield.In respect to recent performances, it would be very strange if Tuchel goes with the first option of dropping either of Kante or Kovaciç so the second option seems the most likely if Jorginho were to start. In that case, Tuchel would decide to go with a 3-5-2 where Kante and Kovaciç play either side of Jorginho and then the two forwards play in a split to attack the spaces usually vacated by Liverpool’s full backs.In that instance, there’s little or no option for Lukaku and that means Tuchel goes for either a combo of Kai and Pulisic or Ziyech alongside Kai.
Using my discretion, I would opt for the combo of Kai and Ziyech for the start of the match with players like Pulisic, Mount, Callum and Romelu all acting as super subs if need be. Another option would be the inclusion of Jorginho and then a back four with Malabg Sarr coming in on the left to replace Marcos Alonso. That option has been exploited in recent weeks by Tuchel and he could opt for that against Klopp to surprise him a little. Playing a back four in that manner would be the presence of one other attacker on the pitch and that mean matching up against Liverpool formation wise. That sure has its advantages in operating in the same spaces as the Anfield giants and the obvious disadvantage is matching up with a well drilled side head on.
Predicted lineup: (3-5-2) Kepa – Christensen, Silva, Rudiger – Azpilicueta, Kante, Jorginho, Kovaciç, Alonso – Kai, Pulisic.
Aside all the previewed decisions awaiting Tuchel, we are sure to have our TV screens blessed with the view of two of the best German coaches coming head to head once again, this time in Wembley!
The final is at Wembley in the UK and with the recent happenings in Europe with Ukraine and Russia there would be sort of emotions at the beginning of the match to show support for the Ukrainians. Human lives comes first and we ChelseaFC365 also show our love to the people of Ukraine in this trying times. We stand with Ukraine! 🇺🇦
