Chelsea - Fab 4 vs Liverpool

Our first opponent is Liverpool. Liverpool are a team we've played many times in recent years owing to our yearly clashes in the Champions League which honestly makes me sick since we've played them too often for my liking.

Currently in what must be their worst season under Rafa Benitez with qualification for the round of 16 no longer in their hands, their midfield is nothing to boast about other than Stevie G.

However, their midfield last season was much stronger when Xabi Alonso was still hanging around and that will be the midfield the Fab 4 will face.

Liverpool use 4-2-3-1 and that is the formation they will play against the Fab 4.

Liverpool: - Alonso, Mascherano, Gerrard, Kuyt, Riera

Winner: Chelsea

Reasons:

Liverpool win largely because of one thing. The partnership consisting of Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres where Gerrard will play off Torres to score goals or set up Torres. Xabi Alonso acts as a deep lying playmaker and supplies Gerrard with good balls, he also does enough defending to allow Gerrard to run forward without having to track back.

There in it lies the flaw. That is their only plan that works. When either player does not play, the team cannot function. Kuyt and Riera cannot be expected to win games for Liverpool all by themselves, they are bit part players.

Although Kuyt has improved his scoring record last season, he does not deliver the goods when Gerrard and Torres are out. The plan to stop Liverpool is to simply mark out Steven Gerrard by using your teams defensive midfielder.

This worked with Michael Essien removing Gerrard from the game in the quarter-final of the Champions League where Chelsea ran out 3-1 winners.

This is different from Chelsea where the fluidity of the midfield makes it hard for one player to be effectively marked out. If Deco is marked out, Lampard and Ballack can easily fill in for him. The same applies for the rest.

Kuyt can't do this for the case of Gerrard. Neither can Riera or Alonso, the partnership between Torres and them is not the same as it is with Gerrard.

With that, I can say our midfield is superior to Liverpool's.

Next: Barcelona's Terrific Trio!

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