Liverpool fans will want to forget this weekend as they suffered a dramatic loss to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

Given that this loss happened just before the international break, it’ll be on the lips of everyone for the next two weeks, so let’s talk about it.

How did Maresca and Chelsea outclass Liverpool and Arne Slot at Stamford Bridge?

Tactical Discipline

The game started as a battle of two different tactical approaches, and even though it became a frenzy towards the end, Maresca’s tactics gave Chelsea the win. 

From the start, Chelsea controlled the game. Everything was going according to plan for Enzo Maresca, and if there’s anything we’ve learnt from watching Maresca, it’s that once things go according to plan A, the Blues are bound to win. 

The first half was a masterclass from Chelsea, and it set the tone for how they were going to beat Liverpool. 

Just as Cucurella mentioned, overloading and exploiting the right wing, given that Salah wasn’t going to track the run of Cucurella fully, gave them that edge. Enzo, Cucurella, and Garnacho gave Bradley some food for thought, and Szoboslai’s press wasn’t enough to stop the overload. 

It was the same in the second period when Gittens came on. This time, instead of failing to beat his man and make inside runs or shoot, Gittens did all of the above. To further prove this, Chelsea’s winning goal was created on that wing, and there was little Liverpool could do to stop it.

Read More: Chelsea Gives Liverpool A Taste of Their Own Medicine

Chelsea Wanted It More

Despite having a less experienced squad and a patched-up defence, Chelsea showed that they wanted it more. The wonder goal from Caicedo in the first half was a sign of things to come, and Liverpool didn’t catch on quickly. 

Every Chelsea player wanted to impress, and they did. Even Maresca impressed fans and pundits with his decisions on the field. Achaeampong and Badiashile played like they were the best CB pairing in the league. In front, Neto and Garnacho gave it their all, and when Gittens and Estevao came on, Chelsea fans couldn’t have asked for a better cameo.

Lavia, Hato, Enzo, and Gusto played like their rent was due, and Caicedo showed why there is no better defensive midfielder in the world than him. While Caicedo walked away with the man of the match award, Reece James stole the show. In the space of 90 minutes, he played an RB, CM, and CB, and Liverpool couldn’t fathom the absolute class that oozed throughout.

Maresca played a huge part in this win as he didn’t chicken out like he did in the game against Manchester United and Brighton. He saw there was a game to win, and he made impactful subs, and the result speaks for itself. 

Liverpool Were Lacklustre

Liverpool were once again not at their best. Despite winning those games in the manner they did at the start of the season, they weren’t convincing, and three consecutive losses seem enough to open everyone’s eyes to what has been glaring all season.

The defence needs to be worked on. Konate hasn’t been in form, and Van Dijk’s “aura defending” just made matters worse. Kerkez doesn’t seem like the guy we watched last season. Salah isn’t at that level, and he was one of the people who added more salt to injury in this game. 

While Liverpool’s midfield set-up was good, Chelsea won the game by taking out that midfield. It couldn’t cope with the ruthlessness of Caicedo and the energetic pulse of Enzo Fernandez. 

If anything, this match showed that Maresca was right when he said he was learning on the job because this was a way better performance than all their games this season. For Slot, this is another subpar performance, and they didn’t even deserve a draw.

Liverpool fans would hope that this win will spark some sense in the Liverpool players, while for Chelsea fans, they would hope that they can keep playing like this every week and go toe to toe with the best teams in the division.