Chelsea have an opportunity to truly turn a corner under Graham Potter when they face Liverpool in Jurgen Klopp's 1,000th game as a manager.
Just four months into the job, Potter had to fend off questions regarding his future on the back of a run of one win in eight matches, six of those ending in defeat.
Last weekend's slender 1-0 win over Crystal Palace has brought the "buzz" back to Chelsea, in the view of Potter, but another loss at Anfield on Saturday could change all that.
Tenth-place Chelsea are not the only Premier League giant to have struggled this term, with opponents Liverpool level on points in ninth, albeit having played a game less.
Indeed, this weekend's meeting will mark the first time since the 2015-16 campaign that both sides have been outside the top six at this stage of a season.
Stats Perform has picked out the standout Opta numbers to preview the big game, with both clubs needing to put a strong run together to have any change of securing a top-four finish.
Poor form laid bare
Chelsea have won just two of their past 10 Premier League matches, collecting nine points from a possible 30 in that period.
Both of those victories – against Bournemouth late last month before seeing off Palace – have been on home soil, with the Blues winless in five away top-flight matches since mid-October.
Liverpool's form has been equally as patchy, having lost back-to-back league games in 2023 against Brentford and Brighton and Hove Albion, the two sides directly above them.
They picked up their first win of the year in all competitions at the fourth attempt against Wolves in the FA Cup on Tuesday to lift the gloom.
Not since 1953 have the Reds started a year with three straight league losses.
Draws galore
Both teams are therefore in need of a victory if they are to make up any ground on the top four, though this fixture has often ended all square in recent times.
The two league games last season were drawn – 1-1 at Anfield in August and 2-2 at Stamford Bridge five months later, with Chelsea recovering from two goals down in the latter.
Then came the EFL and FA Cup finals contested in the space of three months that defined both sides' seasons; each ending goalless before Liverpool prevailed on penalties.
Never before have Liverpool and Chelsea drawn three consecutive league games, though, so that streak looks set to end this weekend.
No home comforts
Preceding that run of draws, Chelsea won 1-0 at Anfield in March 2021 – Mason Mont scoring the only goal – to continue an interesting sequence in this fixture.
The home team has won just three of the past 17 league games between Liverpool and Chelsea – and none in the Reds' case since July 2020 on the day they lifted the title.
Due to the high number of draws, though, Liverpool have lost only two of their past 15 top-flight games with Chelsea at Anfield, winning six and having to settle for a point seven times in that sequence.
Mudryk to make his mark?
One of the big factors behind Liverpool's drop-off this season has been their struggles at the back, having conceded 25 goals in 18 games – compared to 26 in 38 last season.
Should they concede against Chelsea, it will be the first time since between May and October 2016 they have gone nine successive Premier League games without a clean sheet.
Not since December 1953 have they shipped three-or-more goals in three straight top-flight matches, meanwhile, which they are risk of doing on Saturday.
But that seems highly unlikely on the face of it as Chelsea have only scored more than twice in a league game once this season, coming in October's 3-0 win at Wolves.
Mykhailo Mudryk's arrival has bolstered Chelsea's attack, and he is out to become the first Ukrainian to score on their Premier League debut.
Q&A – How Man City and Arsenal exits could impact Premier League’s European race
The prospect of five English clubs competing in next season’s Champions League is hanging by a thread after Manchester City and Arsenal were knocked out of the continent’s premier club competition on Wednesday night.
Here, the PA news agency explains the situation.
Why is there an extra place?From this season, the two countries who collectively perform best in this season’s men’s European club competitions will each gain a European Performance Spot (EPS) for one of their clubs in the following season’s Champions League, which will feature a 36-team league phase from 2024-25 replacing the familiar eight groups of four.
For each of the best-performing countries, the EPS goes to the highest-finishing club in those countries who have not already qualified for the Champions League via their domestic performance. In England’s case, that would be the team finishing fifth – currently Tottenham.
How do the rankings look at the moment?The rankings – known as the association club coefficient – are led this season by Italy. Germany were already ahead of England in the race for the second spot heading into the quarter-final second legs, but the exits of City and Arsenal – coupled with Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund making progress – have widened the gap.
Last Friday – after the Europa League and Conference League first legs had been played – Germany had 16.785 points compared to England’s 16.750, a gap of 0.035. On Thursday morning the gap had grown to 0.767, with Germany on 17.642 and England on 16.875.
How are the points worked out?Teams gain points for wins (two) and draws (one) from the start of the group phase in all three of UEFA’s men’s club competitions. Teams also earn points for participation in the Champions League group phase and for making progress beyond certain rounds in all three competitions.
The association coefficient is calculated by working out an average score – dividing the total number of points the clubs win by the number of clubs representing that country in Europe. So in England’s case any points won by the Premier League representatives are divided by eight.
Can England still do it?In theory yes. West Ham and Liverpool could still meet in the Europa League final if they can overturn first-leg deficits to Bayer Leverkusen and Atalanta respectively on Thursday night, and Aston Villa could still go all the way in the Conference League. That, coupled with the remaining German teams stumbling, means there is still very slim hope.
But Germany certainly have the edge and could even end up with six teams in next season’s Champions League. If Dortmund finish fifth in the Bundesliga but win the Champions League, it would be the second of those achievements which would secure them their Champions League place for 2024-25. The EPS would then be awarded to whoever finishes sixth – currently Eintracht Frankfurt.
Cole Palmer an ‘absolute genius’ who could help England win Euro 2024 – Joe Cole
Cole Palmer is an “absolute genius” who could help England win Euro 2024, according to former international Joe Cole.
Palmer has lit up the Premier League following his move to Chelsea from Manchester City, scoring 20 goals and notching nine assists in a brilliant breakout season.
The 21-year-old is a contender to win the Golden Boot ahead of former City team-mate Erling Haaland and looks set to be on the plane as Gareth Southgate’s men try to earn Euros glory this summer.
View this post on InstagramPalmer, who has won two caps, was not involved in last month’s friendlies against Brazil and Belgium due to injury, but Cole believes he can be the difference-maker in Germany.
“He has been sensational and there is an argument he could be Player of the Year – that’s how good he has been,” Cole told the PA news agency.
“You have to bring a player of that quality.
“The technicians are what are going to win us the tournament. They all have to go and they all have to have time on the pitch.
“Palmer is a top player. I have watched him play and he is a top, top player.
“Cole Palmer is an absolute genius.”
Cole is also impressed by Palmer’s mentality, highlighted by his refusal to hand a penalty over to squabbling team-mates Nicolas Jackson and Noni Madueke, despite already scoring a hat-trick in the 6-0 win over Everton.
Palmer kept his cool and scored a fourth to take his tally to 20 for the season.
Cole added: “It’s fantastic he has got that mindset – he is not a wallflower.
“He is a proper player, he will go anywhere on the pitch and take the ball, he backs himself.
“Sometimes people can look at that with disdain, saying it’s arrogance. It’s not arrogance. We need it and we need more players like that.”
Palmer is a special inclusion in Topps’ UEFA EURO 2024 sticker collection, where he is featured in the ‘Artist of the Game’ category.
Cole said of collecting stickers: “It is a rite of passage. Everyone who loves football gets to that stage where you are collecting.
View this post on Instagram“It’s such a great thing to do, the trading, the anticipation of who you are going to get, who you need.
“It is just a great social thing for kids to do. It becomes nostalgic, it’s something that our parents did and our kids do, it’s part of our culture.”
:: Joe Cole was speaking to mark the launch of Topps’ official UEFA EURO 2024™ sticker collection, which is available to buy now.
Izzy Christiansen: English club taking European crown would be ‘massive’ for WSL
Former England midfielder Izzy Christiansen believes an English team winning the Champions League would be “massive” for the Women’s Super League.
No English team has won the competition except Arsenal in 2007, although Chelsea have come within touching distance of the trophy after reaching the 2021 final, but were beaten 4-0 by Barcelona in Gothenburg.
The Blues are hoping to go one step further this season as they continue their campaign with two semi-final ties against Barcelona this month and Christiansen believes an English Champions League winner would be beneficial for the WSL.
“Chelsea have been knocking on the door for the last three or four seasons with the Champions League,” she told the PA news agency.
“Everyone knows you almost have to go through that disappointment of being in a final, getting knocked out in the knockout rounds and the situation now where they’re in the semis, it’s going to be tight, but those previous experiences will definitely help them.
“If there were to be an English team to win a Champions League in the next few years then it would be massive for the league and solidify the work that goes into the league and creating this really high performing, sustainable, competitive model that brings out Champions League winners from our country year on year.”
Christiansen is no stranger to success herself in the Champions League, having been part of Lyon’s side who claimed glory in 2018-19, and she described playing in the competition as a “different” feeling.
“It’s like – as cringe as it sounds – there’s magic in the air, this feeling you feel on a Champions League gameday that’s just different,” Christiansen added.
“I think it’s really important everyone understands how big it is and if we can have teams that continually compete in the latter stages of that competition then it’s massive for the WSL.”
The WSL title race is set for another tight finish with Chelsea and Manchester City sat level on 46 points at the top with four games to go.
City sit second on goal difference and Christiansen believes her former club have been “brilliant” this season.
“It’s really interesting actually because I’ve seen a massive shift this season in the way that they play,” she said.
“Nothing’s really changed massively, they’ve been really consistent with the methodology, the style, the manager, the players.
“The squad hasn’t changed much since last season. Jill Roord coming in – if she was still fit you’d be wondering where City would be right now, probably a similar position – but the job Jess Park’s done since coming in, the job Alex Greenwood’s done, Lauren Hemp’s just been outstanding.
“Without the Champions League there’s been huge focus on the WSL and that consistency. The squad, the culture within the squad, all of these things matter and I think they’ve been brilliant.”
Christiansen was speaking ahead of this year’s London Marathon taking place on Sunday; she is running for the Bobby Moore Fund and admitted is is an “honour” to be doing so for the cause.
“It’s an honour really because Bobby Moore being a former England international, a legend of the game, he died of bowel cancer which is the reason why I’m running the London Marathon is to raise awareness of the early symptoms of bowel cancer,” Christiansen said.
“His wife set up the foundation when he died basically with the aim to raise as much money and awareness towards research, which I believe has been extremely successful.
“It was really nice the other day I had an email from Stephanie Moore, his wife, wishing me good luck and inviting me to a post-run drinks reception, which I’m sure will be very nice come around three o’clock on Sunday afternoon.”
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