The Liverpool/Chelsea Rivalry

By: Rob | October 2nd, 2009

So its another all-big-four matchup this weekend, as Liverpool take on Chelsea. Its probably a bit to much to ask for a game like last seasons Champions League second leg (above), but it does serve as a nice reminder that not EVERY match between these teams is a dreadfully boring draw.

The clubs have, in the post-Mourinho era built up a very interesting rivalry. There does seem to be a genuine dislike between the two clubs, but unlike a simple case of geography, or a historical rivalry, the reasons for these two clubs dislike of each other is genuinely fascinating.

There are a few reasons for the rivalry being built up over the last decade, the primary one being that Liverpool haven’t won a league title in a very long time but have an incredibly successful history with it, and Chelsea have had recent success in the league, but have historically been less successful. So the Chelsea faithful can view Liverpool as resting on their laurels and living in the past, the Liverpool support can think of Chelsea has Nouveau riche types, who have only come into their own because of recent money being spent.

The other reasons seem to be that they always draw one another in the Champions League – in fact the above match was their 43,000th meeting in the competition in the last 5 years. Add that to twice in the league a season, and the occasional other cup draw and you can see why they might be sick of the sight of one another.

Another factor is the Lampard vs Gerrard debate, which has been a subplot of English football over the last decade. The point is, they are basically very similar players. They both score absurd amounts of goals from midfield, both somehow define the clubs they play for, both struggle to shine for England sometimes (at least untill Don Fabio found a way to make them play together) and neither is really loved by people that support clubs that aren’t Liverpool or Chelsea.

All should lead up to a fiery encounter at the weekend. But can it deliver the goods? Both sides are coming off lacklustre Champions League matches – Chelsea beat APOEL by a single goal, much to Carlo’s disappointment while Liverpool suffered a loss in Florence against Fiorentina. Both will be desperate to bounce back – don’t forget Chelsea suffered their first defeat of the season last weekend against Wigan.

Hopefully all these ingredients can lead to a good game. Certainly Liverpool have come out of thier shells over the last couple of years – scoring goals galore last season, and Fernando Torres league form has been amazing – and Chelsea are far less defensively minded than the were under Jose Mourinho.

Also – there has been a shocking lack of draws in the Premier League this season, as teams go gung-ho at it. Hopefully, Chelsea/Liverpool will be following in this trend.