Liverpool vs. Chelsea: Date, Time, Live Stream, TV Info, Capital One Cup Preview
Liverpool and Chelsea are no strangers to facing each other in crucial last-four contests, and the two sides will resume their longstanding rivalry when they square off in the first leg of the Capital One Cup semi-final.
Jose Mourinho will be hoping his side can pick up a positive result at Anfield in the first of what should be two encapsulating games. This is a competition that the Portuguese boss has usually taken pretty seriously during his time in England, so expect to see the Blues field a very strong side for this one.
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The Reds are enjoying something of a renaissance as of late and will see this competition as their best chance of picking up silverware this season. Semi-finals under the lights at Anfield are never games to be missed and here’s all the information you need on where to catch the first leg of this League Cup tie:
Date: Tuesday, Jan. 20
Time: 7:45 p.m. (GMT), 2:45 p.m. (ET)
Live Stream: Sky Go (UK), beIN Sports Connect (U.S.)
TV Info: Sky Sports 1 (UK), beIN Sports (U.S.)
Blues Looking To Silence Anfield Crowd
The League Cup is unique in its take on the away-goals rule. Getting a positive result on the road remains typically paramount to a team’s chances of progression, but it’s only after extra-time in the second leg when goals scored by the away team become a factor. Hopefully, it means we’ll see a very open first-leg affair.
Chelsea are a team that’ll really fancy their chances going into this one, though. They have already won at Anfield this season and are coming into this clash on the back of what was arguably the best performance they’ve put in this campaign; a magnificent 5-0 win away at Swansea City.
John Cross of the Mirror had especially high praise for the Blues on the back of that hallmark display:
If they are capable of rocking up in Merseyside and playing to the same levels, Mourinho’s men have the potential to blow the Reds away. Liverpool did make things difficult for the league leaders earlier in the campaign, but a poacher's effort from Diego Costa hauled the men from Stamford Bridge to victory.
Ominously for Brendan Rodgers, the forward is in red-hot form at the moment, per Sky Sports HQ:
"Another two goals for Diego Costa means he has now scored 17 goals in 19 Premier league games. #SSNHQ pic.twitter.com/Jr0mV69Y3m
— Sky Sports News HQ (@SkySportsNewsHQ) January 17, 2015"
In the elusive talents of Eden Hazard and Cesc Fabregas, the Blues have the men to provide ample ammunition for the former Atletico Madrid man too, per Squawka Football:
With Loic Remy and Didier Drogba waiting in the wings it’ll be intriguing to see if Costa does start. For neutrals it’d certainly be intriguing to see how he fares against Liverpool’s restructured three-man defence, a shift that has brought the Reds much more prosperous results in recent weeks.
James Pearce of the Liverpool Echo singled out the players at the back for particular praise in the aftermath of Liverpool’s recent win away at Aston Villa:
You suspect that area will be tested in earnest by the Blues’ effervescent and incisive attacking talent, but with a raucous crowd roaring them on, Liverpool will fancy their chances of getting at this Chelsea team. There seems to be much more confidence emanating from this Reds side at the moment and that should show in such a massive game.
Chelsea just look too strong at the moment, though. There’s much to like about Liverpool’s new system and the strides they’ve made in early 2015, but so far it’s a setup that’s yet to be fully tested by a well-oiled, incisive side. That’s going to change in a big way on Tuesday evening.
The Blues should expect a hostile atmosphere from the Anfield crowd with Wembley just touching distance away and a lightning-quick start from the hosts is surely inevitable. But Mourinho's men have the nous to come through that period, take control of the game and bring a lead back to Stamford Bridge for the second leg.
Prediction: Liverpool 1-3 Chelsea
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