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Liverpool held Chelsea to a 1-1 draw in a EPL match at Stamford Bridge on Saturday. This draw meant that Liverpool remained at the 2nd position in the league with 19 points and Chelsea languished at 3rd with 17 points after 7 rounds of matches. Chelsea scored in the first half through Eden Hazard to take the lead but Liverpool managed to equalise through a stunning Daniel Sturridge goal in the 88th minute of the match.
Liverpool were the dominant team in the second half as they squandered at least two genuine goal-scoring opportunities. Xherdan Shaqiri missed from point-blank range while Roberto Firmino’s header was cleared from the goal-line by David Luiz. Chelsea defended dourly as their side-backs did not overlap at all in the second half and managed to keep a check on Mohammed Salah and Sadio Mane. Salah managed to take a shot at the Chelsea goal in the first half but that was about it and he was rightly substituted by coach Jurgen Klopp.
Chelsea put in a solid defensive display and Hazard was superb as usual. Anthony Rudiger also had a good match and thwarted a lot of Liverpool attacks. We are going to have a look at the 3 players who caught our eyes in the match.
#1 Eden Hazard
Hazard had yet another brilliant game in the Chelsea attack and gave the Liverpool defenders. He repeatedly cut in from the left wing and was a constant menace through the inside-left channel. His goal was also a result of one of his runs from the left wing. He dribbled past a Liverpool defender and slotted the ball past the Liverpool goalie to the far corner of the goal.
Hazard missed an opportunity to score in the second half as well as he received a through ball from the Liverpool half and tried to put it past Becker, but the Brazilian goalie was equal to the task and made a brilliant save to deny Hazard. This was Hazard’s 6th goal in the league this season and if he continues to play like this, Chelsea would fancy their chances of winning the title.
#2 Andrew Robertson
The Scottish left-back of Liverpool was impressive last season and is continuing his good run this season too. He was a constant threat though the left wing and made life difficult for Cezar Azpilicueta. He beat the Chelsea right-back on quite a few occasions and delivered some nice crosses into the box.
One of his crosses almost led to a goal but Shaqiri squandered the wonderful opportunity to score. Robertson had more opportunities to attack than right-back Alexander-Arnold as the latter had to keep a constant check on Hazard and he made full use of those. This young left-back seems to have a great career ahead of him.
#3 Daniel Sturridge
No praise is enough for the brilliant goal scored by Sturridge last night. He has been with Liverpool for the last 5 years and should definitely get more match time. His stunning left-footed shot gave no chance to the Chelsea goalie and found the top-left corner of the net. This was Sturridge’s 67th goal for Liverpool and there should be many more to come. He earned Liverpool a very valuable away point with his wonderful strike.
Klopp should have probably introduced Sturridge at the beginning of the second half as the latter seems to have a knack of scoring crucial goals. His physical strength and opportunism combine to make him a very handy player to have in the bench. The fact that he has a very decent shot on him only adds to his value as a player.
