34 Points, Three Games Left: Chelsea Take Their Crown to Liverpool

“We cannot let that become the story of our season.” Liverpool have little time to dwell on today’s 2-1 defeat at Everton before Chelsea bring the champions’ swagger to this English Premier Division derby on 10 May.

The table is stark: Chelsea have 97 points from 35 games, Liverpool 63 from 36, with three matches left. Chelsea sealed the title on 5 April and have won five league games in a row. Liverpool sit fourth, with three defeats and a draw in their last four league games. They have scored 41 from chances worth 47.3 expected goals; Chelsea have 115 from 93.0. One side has made chances count, the other has left too much unfinished.

Chelsea beat Liverpool 6-1 in the English Premier Division on 22 December, 3-0 in the UEFA Champions League on 24 October and 2-1 in the English Community Shield on 5 August. Júnior scored twice in December, while Lionel Messi struck twice, including a penalty. Liverpool’s sole reply came from Mark Taylor. Since that day, five Chelsea players from the expected starting eleven have changed, while Liverpool’s likely side includes Sam Lowson instead of Makis Sotiriou.

Chelsea’s 4-1 win over Manchester City today keeps the champions in full cry. Billy Laing has created eight clear-cut chances across his last three games, and Messi has made eight in his last four. Liverpool’s Francisco Montiel, meanwhile, has one assist in his last five. The duel between Messi and Roberto Ştefănescu may be decisive; Chelsea’s left winger has the sharper recent average rating.

Liverpool are expected to be without Matt Allen, who is out with blisters, and goalkeeper Eddie Melia, whose thigh strain keeps him sidelined. Allen and Melia both spent seasons at Chelsea, though neither made more than four appearances there. The old boys’ links will be a sideshow. Liverpool need a better answer to Chelsea than the one they found in December—and a derby defeat today has made the demand more urgent.