Liverpool-Chelsea combined XI

Defence

The true captain of Chelsea

Right-back

It is somewhat of a misfortune for Cesar Azpilicueta that he is a Spaniard. If he was of any other nationality, he might have been a starter for his national team. However, with Carvajal in the Spanish team, he is most likely to not be a starter for Spain – but that doesn’t stop him from being one of Chelsea’s elite players and the right-back in my team.

Left-back

Alberto Moreno has been fantastic so far this season. His improvement over the course of the last few months has been astonishing, to say the least. However, Marcos Alonso has been brilliant at his job ever for the last 3-4 years and his consistency will get him a place on this team. In terms of pure talent, however, Alberto Moreno could be better and – who knows – be on a list like this ahead of his compatriot next time.

Centre-backs

Matip is the only 'defender' Liverpool have

Antonio Conte plays a 3-man defence and each and every one of his defenders has a case to be here. However, Gary Cahill’s form has been on the decline for quite a while now and one gets the impression that the captain’s armband is what is helping him find a spot in the starting XI.

And, well, David Luiz is David Luiz. Andreas Christensen, meanwhile, might be the most talented among the lot but he hasn't played consistently enough to be on this list.

Also, the less we talk about Liverpool’s defence the better. However, Joel Matip will make it to this team purely on the basis of what he could do with a decent partner beside him. There are often times when it feels like Matip is the only one doing some defending in the backline – and alongside Antonio Rudiger, he could be perfect.

The former Roma man’s ability perfectly complements Joel Matip. Both the defenders are good at passing and their tall build makes them a formidable unit aerially.