Chelsea vs Liverpool Betting Tips

This Sunday, football lovers will be in clover. The first of two matches in which members of the Premiership's 'big four' square up against each other takes place at Stamford Bridge where the reigning champions Chelsea will entertain one of the key pretenders to their crown, Liverpool. For the Reds this match will be all about bucking long-standing league trends because the Merseyside club have only beaten Chelsea once since the inauguration of the Premiership, which was in January 2004. Liverpool have been beaten in eight of their last ten Premiership encounters at 'The Bridge' and, within those ten games, have managed to score a total of just five goals. I am of the opinion that Chelsea's dominance isn't going to be as prevalent as it has been during the last two seasons. In fact, I reckon they will be usurped as champions this time around. But it's hard to crib their form at Stamford Bridge - last term they didn't lose one of their 19 games there in the league, amassing a hugely impressive tally of 47 goals, and conceding just nine times. For their part, Pool are generally speaking a solid outfit on their travels. During the 2005/06 campaign, only the Blues boasted a better overall record. Rafa's charges lost just five of their 19 fixtures on rival turf and conceded just 17 times - an average of under a goal a game. Pretty impressive by all accounts. In terms of current form, neither side have made what can be described as an electrifying start to the season. Chelsea have been workmanlike in winning three of their four Premiership ties played thus far and suffered a reverse away to Middlesbrough on August 23, while Liverpool's three games played in this competition have consisted of a draw at Sheffield United, a hard-fought win over West Ham, and a 3-0 pasting at the hands of their arch rivals Everton. However, on a positive note for Pool, they showed no signs of confidence aftershock when playing out a highly creditable goalless draw away at PSV Eindhoven in their midweek Champions League clash. Chelsea will have no under-achievement hangovers to cramp them either after they duly got the job done against the visiting Werder Bremen, beating the German side 2-0. Both Ballack and Sheva, Chelsea's big two pre-season acquisitions, have already demonstrated their class, and both will be key players in Sunday's match. Michael Ballack broke his duck for Chelsea when rifling a penalty home in the Werder Bremen game, and it will be interesting to see what he and Steven Gerard make of each other - a battle for middle-of-the-park supremacy might ensue, and what a treat it will be for the spectators if it does. While Jose Mourinho fielded 11 of his finest against Bremen, Liverpool's Spanish coach elected to put some of his key players on ice against PSV, which underlines how seriously he is taking this bout with the Blues. Indeed, Liverpool got one over on Chelsea in the Community Shield and Rafa knows full well that a match like his can often be a defining point in a team's season, regardless of the fact that it's still early days. A victory for Chelsea would serve as to reassert their authority, while three points for Liverpool would provide a psychological boost of gargantuan proportions - and would signal lift off to a Premiership campaign in which they have stumbled off the blocks, rather than hit the ground running. But, with both teams naturally desperate not to be defeated, I feel that this match will end all square. The visitors have a notoriously dogged defence, the heartbeat of which are the talismanic duo of Jamie Carragher and Sami Hyypia, and this double act will form an impenetrable barrier around Jose Reina. Despite Chelsea's abundant firepower, I just cannot see Liverpool's line of defence being infiltrated. Chelsea will be frustrated. By the same token, for all of Craig Bellamy's tenacity, Peter Crouch's aerial presence and the impressive Dirk Kuyt's energy, the two shining beacons that are Carvalho and Terry will take the world of passing. Three of the last seven competitive meetings between Chelsea and Liverpool in all competitions have resulted in stalemates, and I can see this one going that way too. So, my advice? Take VC bet up on their magnanimous offer of 9/1 about 0-0 in the correct score market. Verdict - 1pt 0-0 in the correct score market @ 9/1 (VC bet)