Liverpool vs Chelsea: Can Reds Tackle Fernando Torres' Blues on Super Sunday?

One week ago, Chelsea had a slim shot at remaining Premier League champions. Liverpool weren’t guaranteed a spot in Europe, let alone the Champions League, and Fernando Torres was still on Merseyside.

In one day, the Premier League title race got a little more interesting, the Reds got some new life, and what was already a Super Sunday matchup became a mammoth one.

Torres went to Chelsea for £50 million while Liverpool signed both Luis Suarez and Newcastle’s Andy Carroll for a combined £57.8 million. And the game plan for both teams changed entirely.

Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti has stated Torres should be involved in the match but is not a sure bet to start against his former club. Chelsea’s cheap signing on deadline day, former Benfica man David Luiz, is also in contention for his Blues debut.

Torres, now the Blues’ No. 9, claimed it may be his destiny to score his first goal for Chelsea against Liverpool (his first goal for the Reds came against, guess who, Chelsea), but he will not celebrate out of respect for Liverpool fans.

It will take some time for the new-look Chelsea to form because no matter how you look at it, the purchase of Torres brings with it some problems. Ancelotti has used a 4-3-3 formation most of the season with Didier Drogba, Florent Malouda and Nicolas Anelka up front. That is a system Torres simply does not fit into.

Will Torres come in to partner Drogba in a 4-4-2 formation that he is more accustomed to, or will he be the lone striker with the likes of Drogba or Malouda supporting him? No matter where he goes, Ancelotti will have to leave someone on the bench, and it’s not going to be the youngest and most expensive one. So, the “Billionaires in Blue” better prepare themselves for some attitude.

Rumor has it Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich is the one who really orchestrated the Torres purchase, not his manager. Time will tell if Ancelotti handles the situation better than Jose Mourinho did with the signing of Andriy Shevchenko.

Back on Merseyside, Reds manager Kenny Dalglish has happier problems to contend with. Carroll will be injured for a few more weeks, but former Ajax captain Suarez came on in the second half against Stoke and scored a goal after 16 minutes on the field (coincidence note: Torres’ first goal for the Reds against Chelsea came in, guess what, the 16th minute).

Against Stoke, the Reds played three at the back and effectively had a six-man midfield behind lone striker Dirk Kuyt until Suarez was brought on. Stoke’s long-ball, physical tactics would’ve been no fun for Suarez, and his debut was made easier given that the Reds were already up a goal.

But this attack-minded formation may do well at Stamford Bridge against a team like Chelsea that will most certainly be looking to score and play free-flowing football. Liverpool vice-captain and defensive stalwart Jamie Carragher was also an unused substitute Wednesday night and so could return to the starting lineup for the first time since November.

Dalglish may choose to give Suarez his first start and could leave Kuyt up front as his strike partner. He likely won’t tell his full backs Martin Kelly and Glen Johnson to get forward quite as often, but if they can, Chelsea’s back line better be sharp.

With both teams currently flying high, playing enticing football and looking to score whenever possible, fans should expect an exciting game. A Chelsea victory would certainly put them back in the title race, and if Torres were to get the winning goal, it could do a lot to justify his price tag and calm any rumored dissent between manager and owner.

But a Liverpool victory could just knock the Blues out of title contention while simultaneously giving the Reds all kinds of life for the rest of the season, not to mention at least a 10-year contract for Dalglish.