Chelsea face Liverpool: Time, team news, all you need to know
Chelsea square off with Liverpool in a Friday night showcase. Ahead of this tasty Premier League clash, here is all you need to get up to speed.
Premier League football on a Friday is a magnificent idea. Chelsea and Liverpool are the latest to be showcased as the weekend gets underway. Here is all you need to know for this Premier League clash.
Chelsea v Liverpool, 16th September 2016
Stamford Bridge, Premier League
Time: 20:00 BST, 15:00 ET
TV: Sky Sports 1 (UK), NBCSN (US), find your local TV station here
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Team News
The biggest piece of team news for this game is that David Luiz will start for the Blues. Antonio Conte confirmed in his pre-match press conference that the Brazilian will make his second Chelsea debut under the lights at Stamford Bridge.
John Terry rolled his ankle late during the Swansea City draw and will be out for at least 10 days. Luiz has a chance to show everyone how far his defensive game has come in the intermission.
There are no other injury concerns for Conte, as Chelsea’s decent luck on that front continues. John Obi Mikel may return to the squad for the first time since winning bronze at Rio 2016.
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The rest of the team is likely to be unchanged. The boss has stated his desire for the new arrivals to integrate fully before being handed starts. While Luiz’s re-debut is forced, that of Marcos Alonso will be on hold.
After scoring both goals against Swansea, Diego Costa will not be yielding his place to Michy Batshuayi. However, Conte may go with a different formation to incorporate them as a striking duo.
In the midfield, it seems that Oscar will continue with Nemanja Matic while Cesc Fabregas warms the bench.
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The Opposition
Liverpool are one hell of an entertaining side. Once again, this season they look very good going forward while appearing criminally awful at the back.
Dejan Lovren will return to the matchday squad following injury, but he is unlikely to start. Emre Can, meanwhile, does not make the trip to the capital.
Daniel Sturridge started their last game against Leicester City, with Philippe Coutinho rested. However, Reds fans seem to think that the Brazilian will replace the Englishman for Friday night’s clash.
Liverpool are in mixed form. They have won two of their opening four Premier League fixtures. Two impressive victories over Arsenal and Leicester were tempered with a bizarre 2-0 loss against Burnley.
Referee
Martin Atkinson is set to take charge of the contest and he will likely be kept busy. Two poor defences and two talented attacks will facilitate numerous mistimes tackles. The 45-year-old has dished out six yellow cards in his three Premier League games so far.
Game Central
Predicted Chelsea XI
Four keys to look for
Five key clashes
Choose your combined XI
Score predictions
Four tasty bets