Now without departed manager Graham Potter, who recently ended his reign as the shortest-serving permanent Chelsea boss in the Premier League era, the home side appeared invigorated by the promise of an imminent new regime at Stamford Bridge and started on the front foot.
In the first major chance of the evening, Mateo Kovačić’s strike was cleared off the line by Ibrahima Konaté, setting a precedent for Chelsea to dictate the opening stages. Yet the hosts’ lack of confidence in front of goal, which yielded just three goalscoring league outings at Stamford Bridge in 2023, was also in evidence.
The Blues’ first-half woes in the final third were summed up particularly well in the 26th minute, as Reece James’ volley from the edge of the area was ruled out for offside in the build-up.
The generally cagey first half suited Jürgen Klopp though, as he was desperate to avoid a fourth consecutive away loss for the first time as Liverpool boss.
However, the Reds nearly took a shock lead against the run of play as HT loomed, when Joe Gomez’s long-range strike was tipped around the post by Kepa Arrizabalaga.
Deja vu struck in the second period, as Kovačić went one on one with Alisson, but scuffed his shot flying over the crossbar at the vital moment.
Undeterred by the plethora of missed chances, Chelsea were unrelenting in attack, and Kai Havertz thought he’d struck his fourth goal in six matches when he bundled in a rebounded shot from Alisson’s initial save.
Once again though, the Blues were denied by VAR, as replays showed that Havertz had handled the ball before finishing into the net.
The second disallowed goal lowered the tempo in the closing stages, and João Félix’s mis-timed late strike – which ended up in the home fans behind the goal – summed up Chelsea’s lack of quality up front.
Now 11 points off the Champions League places, time is running out for Chelsea to mount a miraculous charge for the top four, and their attention now turns to an imminent quarter-final clash with Real Madrid.
Meanwhile, Liverpool will be slightly more hopeful of reaching the top four, although the Reds will need to address their travel issues swiftly, as they are now winless in nine of their last 11 away matches in all competitions.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Reece James (Chelsea)
