Chelsea 1-1 Liverpool
by Amar Azam
at Stamford Bridge

A NEW Premier League season brings with it a renewed sense of optimism for these two clubs.  

In a pulsating first half, strikes from Luis Diaz, a fine team goal from the visitors, and an equaliser from defender Axel Disasi saw Chelsea and Liverpool share the points in this enjoyable encounter at Stamford Bridge.  

New Chelsea head coach Mauricio Pochettino, applauded off at the final whistle, would have been encouraged by his side’s recovery after going a goal down.

His players ended the match in the ascendency and could have taken the victory. 

Liverpool struck first, on 18 minutes, through Diaz following a stunning sweeping move that began with goalkeeper Alisson Becker.  

Mohamed Salah supplied the crucial assist to his team-mate, carving Chelsea’s defensive unit open with a diagonal pass as Colombian winger slid in to force the ball beyond goalkeeper Robert Sanchez.  

Liverpool had chances to extend their lead as they continued to dominate in an action-packed first half. Salah did have the ball in the net, on 29 minutes, but the goal was ruled out for offside.

Chelsea were back in the match in the 37th minute through Disasi, who stabbed the ball in from close range after Liverpool’s players had failed to clear a corner kick.  

Within moments of the restart following the equaliser, Chelsea had forced the ball in again, but again VAR intervened to rule out the goal from Ben Chilwell.  

The goalless draw in this fixture near the end of last season marked an upturn in form for Klopp’s men, who finished their campaign strongly, having won seven of their final nine matches.  

However, last season was underwhelming by Liverpool’s standards. The league’s longest-serving manager saw his recover to finish the season in fifth place, but no Champions League football this time around is a bitter pill to swallow.  

The second half was a far tighter affair. Chelsea’s impressive new signing Nicolas Jackson had a chance on 72 minutes to put his side into the lead but Alisson was alert to the danger.

Meanwhile, new Liverpool signings Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai were on show. They form part of reconstructed midfield following summer departures. However, on the evidence of this display, the visitors look in need of creative flair as they struggled to create chances.

Both sides are expected to continue their business in the transfer window which could see Brighton midfielder Moises Caicedo end up at one of these two clubs.