Premier League preview: Liverpool v Chelsea
How do you go about learning the football songs they sing at Liverpool?
Consult the fans on Twitter, and that is exactly what Linda Pizutti, the wife of new Liverpool owner John W Henry did before the Europa League match against Napoli on Thursday night.
She was impressed with the way Steven Gerrard single-handedly turned a 1-0 deficit into a 3-1 win thanks to a second half hat-trick, saying on her Twitter page: “Wow. Anfield really is a special place. Fantastic match (certainly heard the Gerrard song) with first class and very fun supporters.”
The feel good factor seems to be around the red half of Merseyside at the moment, and the Liverpool fans have found their voices once again over the last few weeks, with two wins on the spin in the league, which included the hard-fought 1-0 win at Bolton last week with a 87th minute winner from Maxi Rodríguez.
On his performance, Jamie Carragher believes Gerrard is the best player in the history of the club, but surely Kenny Dalglish, Ian Rush and Roger Hunt have something to say about that.
“Stevie is just an unbelievable talent, we all know that,” said Carragher. “We have seen him do things like he did [on Thursday] time and again during his career. But he keeps on producing when it matters and, to me, that makes him the best player the club has ever had and the most influential player ever in the Premier League.”
Down the years Gerrard has pulled his team out of the fire on many occasions, and the tag of being a “one-man team” is something manager Roy Hodgson wants to avoid. “I want every player to step up to the plate and do not want us to be totally dependent on Gerrard or Fernando Torres,” said Hodgson, although he wouldn’t mind if it stayed that way for a bit longer to get the team back to winning ways and up the table.
“I was really pleased for the team and the club because I know Steven is the team and the club.
“Gerrard and Carragher are the heart and soul of the club and they take defeats so badly. If there are three people who have suffered more than anyone from our bad start it is myself and those two because I don't want to be in that position and they certainly don't,” Hodgson added.
It’s a good thing Liverpool have found some confidence in recent weeks, as champions Chelsea come to town. If there is one team you don’t want to play when you’re not playing well, it’s Carlo Ancelotti’s men, and luckily Liverpool have started to play well again.
Top of the table, five points clear of Arsenal and Manchester United, and collecting 10 points out of 15 on the road, Chelsea are taking no prisoners. Having qualified for the Champions League last 16 in midweek with a comfortable 4-1 win over Spartak Moscow, Chelsea are hungry for more, but both sides will probably be sick of the sight of one another, as they have played against each other 26 times in all competitions over the last six years.
Ancelotti may be the expert in guiding his team on the pitch, but he doesn’t seem to be an expert when it comes to injuries. The Italian had initially ruled out French winger Florent Malouda, saying he will definitely miss the game with an ankle injury, but now he has said he is fit to play and will be with the squad.
Last season Chelsea won 2-0 at Anfield which put them a step closer to the title, and the Chelsea boss knows Liverpool will be a danger to his side.
“That was the most important game for us last season and was the key for us winning the title,” he said. “Now we have to play against a different team. They have changed their manager and had some problems at the beginning of the season, but now they have moved on and have won their last three games.”
Ms Pizutti enjoyed the chants towards the Napoli fans of “you’re not singing anymore,” and if she wants to hear them again being sung to the Chelsea fans, then maybe she should make another appearance tomorrow.
Prediction: Liverpool 1 Chelsea 1
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