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Timo Werner is ready to write a headline or two on the last page as he leads the Chelsea line in what will be a riveting match against Liverpool at Stamford Bridge today.
Erner didn’t try to hide his desire to sign for Liverpool this summer and manager Jurgen Klopp seemed eager to bring him to the club, but the finances weren’t there to get the deal out of line. Now we have a chance to see what the Reds missed, as the German leads the Chelsea line.
It’s not hard to imagine a last page of tomorrow’s newspapers with a picture of Werner celebrating a goal and reports suggesting that Liverpool made a big mistake by not signing a striker. Champions must avoid that scenario.
I’ve been saying for a couple of years that they need to sign a top striker to support Mo Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino, as none of them are what I would call a true center forward.
Takumi Minamino and Divock Origi are decent backup options for coach Jurgen Klopp, but Werner could have been a key figure in the team this season. I hope Liverpool do not regret pulling out of the deal.
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Liverpool’s defense begins to creak (Tim Goode / PA)
While Salah, Mane and Firmino have been three great forwards for Liverpool, Werner could have offered something a little different. He is the kind of striker who could be a nightmare for a Liverpool defense that has been creaking for too long and will try to plug some holes.
He can return to a 3-0 loss to Watford in February to mark the moment when defensive lapses began to emerge, and they have never been very far since.
From the Champions League exit against Atlético de Madrid, to the Premier League defeats against Man City and Arsenal in the final of last season, and last weekend’s 4-3 victory against the Leeds at Anfield, the opposition have been enjoying a defense that seemed unbeatable this time last year.
Now the Reds’ bottom line faces one of the biggest national tests of the season against a Chelsea team that appears to have a powerful forefront following the summer arrivals of Werner and Kai Havertz.
Werner makes the kind of attacking bursts that could give Liverpool’s defense nightmares, as he is a master at doubling down his runs and getting behind defenses.
Liverpool’s attacking full-backs leave room in wide areas at times, and Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez will be wary of Werner’s fast runs between them if he gets a decent serve, from what appears to be a dangerous Chelsea midfield led by him. exciting Havertz. .
Blues manager Frank Lampard has received around £ 230 million to spend so far this summer. When you’ve invested so much cash in a team, you certainly expect them to be up there challenging the Premier League title.
So the pressure is on for them to meet the champions in a game that echoes a clash between the same two teams at Stamford Bridge in the opening weeks of last season.
Liverpool got the job done that day, as they won 2-1 against Chelsea, and it set the tone for what was to come next. Klopp’s side then quickly moved away from the chasing group and won the title by a country mile.
Meanwhile, the defensive weaknesses Liverpool exposed in Chelsea’s makeup came back to haunt them time and time again, as they nearly secured a top-four result, but now more is expected of them.
This is the first big test of the new season for both sides, and if Chelsea lose to Liverpool once again, it would leave question marks on how long it will take Lampard to try and fit all the pieces of his expensive assembled image.
As for Liverpool, I hope to see a significant improvement as Klopp (left) and his coaching staff have had eight days to prepare for this match. They need to learn the lessons of their slip-ups in recent months.
I would disagree with the theory that Van Dijk has lost his way as he is still the best defender in the world, but the mistake he made against Leeds last weekend was another wake-up call for a center-back who has established incredibly high standards in recent years.
We’re all surprised when the great Virgil makes a mistake, as he was flawless for months when Liverpool were picking up trophy after trophy, but this is a day for him to go back to basics and do what he does best.
Make no mistake, Chelsea could be a real threat to Liverpool over the course of this season if they are given the urge to score a board win against the defending champs, especially so early in the campaign. But I’m sure Klopp will highlight it to his players. He’ll be punching that into their heads.
The problem is that both teams are heading into this game with the uncertainty about them, as neither team has had a proper preseason before this season. It means that players are getting back into match fitness and new signings are only installed during matches.
As a result, I hope that we will see some surprising result where coaches are forced to work with their best XIs in high intensity Premier League matches.
That, to be fair to them, is never ideal.
So it’s about getting results on the board now and figuring out how to peak in a few weeks.
Part of me thinks that a draw would not be a bad result for Liverpool at Chelsea, but Klopp never enters a game with that mentality. He always wants to win.
He sends his team to score more goals than the rival, even if that means leaving some holes at the rear, as we saw against Leeds.
But maybe that’s not the way to get a result today. They will have to be more in their game.
The secret to his success last season was defensive stability in the first half of the season. They need to start putting some clean sheets on the dash and if they can keep things tight at the rear, Liverpool have enough attacking power to take a toll on Chelsea’s optimism.
I’m concerned Liverpool might slip up at Chelsea, but Klopp’s championship team has responded to its skeptics over and over again over the past few years.
This is your time to step up once more.
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