Chelsea vs. Liverpool: Brendan Rodgers Plays Second-Leg Mind Games with Blues

Brendan Rodgers has insisted his Liverpool side can put Chelsea to the sword during their Capital One Cup semi-final second leg tie at Stamford Bridge.

The Reds boss believes his troops should have won the opening encounter at Anfield. He also suggested that, after Chelsea's 4-2 home loss to Bradford City in Saturday's FA Cup shocker, Jose Mourinho's men are likely to feel fear even if they go a couple of goals up.

Rodgers suggested his team head to west London with the psychological advantage, as reported by David Maddock of the Mirror:

"

Anyone who saw the first leg will think we could have won 3-1 or 4-1. But we didn’t and it’s now a one-off game. But our confidence away from home is high, and we know our retention and speed in the game can hurt any opponent.

[...] Chelsea will want to go out and put it right, but in the back of the their mind, even if they are 2-0 up, they will have a bit of trepidation, wondering what can happen.

"

Michael Regan/Getty Images

Liverpool dominated the initial tie which ended 1-1 at Anfield. The Reds produced 19 shots to Chelsea's two, per WhoScored.com, as Mourinho's men troubled Simon Mignolet just once other than Eden Hazard's penalty. Rodgers' team also enjoyed 61.3 percent possession, posted seven corners to Chelsea's zero and hit a post with Steven Gerrard's left-footed attempt from the edge of the box.

It was a performance of real confidence, typical of how Liverpool are playing right now. The Merseyside club have lost just one of their previous 16 matches in all competitions—the 3-0 defeat to Manchester United in December—and have adapted to Rodgers' 3-4-2-1 formation excellently.

Chelsea's only home loss of the season was the defeat to Bradford, but there's no doubt cracks have begun to show themselves for the Premier League leaders. A once impenetrable defence appears nervy, possession isn't quite sticking in the middle and the incisive attacking play has become easier to quash when opponents isolate Diego Costa.

Michael Regan/Getty Images

Sky Sports' comparison between the two managers shows Mourinho is far more experienced, but this won't deter his former Chelsea colleague:

Mourinho has told his players to "live or die" when Liverpool show up, as reported by Matt Hughes and Tony Barrett of The Times. This quote also made it onto the aforementioned newspaper's Tuesday backpage, per Nick Sutton of BBC Radio 4:

Chelsea's hopes of a treble will fade if they fail to topple their next visitors. Rodgers' team are best when they've got nothing to lose, just like in the first leg, where they deserved to establish a comfortable lead.

Rodgers' attitude is likely to reflect on his players ahead of this one. Passage to the first possible cup final and increasing hopes of making the Champions League would give Liverpool fans plenty to look forward to after a dismal start to the season; highlighting an almighty turnaround if the Reds head back up north with a win.