After crashing out of two cup competitions within the space of four days, Liverpool will be desperate to get their Premier League campaign back on track when they welcome Chelsea to Anfield on Tuesday.
A shock defeat to Wolves was a third in succession at home for the Reds, who are available at 6/4 (2.50) with Paddy Power to return to form with just a second victory in nine fixtures.
Meanwhile, Antonio Conte’s men ran out easy 4-0 winners over Brentford to make it 14 victories in 15 games in all competitions, and are on offer at 9/5 (2.80) to extend their impressive run with another three points here.
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The last two meetings between the teams on this ground have both resulted in draws, and you can get odds of 23/10 (3.10) on them cancelling each other out once again in this one.
Having witnessed a first home defeat in over a year in the last league game against Swansea City, the Anfield crowd hardly expected to be watching in dismay as their team suffered a third in a row just one week later.
However, that development is just the latest in a string of disappointments this calendar year for Jurgen Klopp’s men, who had rounded off 2016 with an impressive victory over Manchester City and dreaming of title success.
After four defeats and just a single win over League Two Plymouth Argyle since the turn of the year, the talk has now turned to a crisis and the danger of missing out on Champions League qualification.
In contrast, the Blues are looking increasingly champions in waiting after responding to defeat against Tottenham Hotspur in their own first game of the year by churning out three consecutive victories in all competitions.
With confidence as high as Liverpool’s is low, that 9/5 (2.80) price looks extremely generous on Chelsea adding to the Merseyside malaise by coming out on top for the third time in four league visits to a stadium where they are unbeaten in five.
