Some tricky decisions for Klopp to make here, not least the approach and whether he wants the game to be played in Chelsea's half or whether he wants us to control space more in the vein of the City match a few weeks ago.
In theory, I think there's a lot going for the latter. For a start, City more or less played the same shape in that game - at least in possession - as Chelsea do. Zabaleta tucked in to make a back three (like Chelsea play), Sterling held his position wide on the right (like Moses), with Kolarov pushing up on the left (like Alonso). Toure and Fernandinho played as a two man central midfield (like Matic and Kante), Silva and De Bruyne operated in the half spaces (like Pedro and Hazard) behind a lone forward, Aguero (Costa). If we look to that game as our last good performance, at least in terms of our defensive solidity, we may well see a similar setup here - a 4-5-1/4-1-4-1 with a v-shaped midfield five, Henderson at the deepest point and the two wide forwards at the top two points pinching in to block the passes through to Hazard and Pedro.
The problem with that would be how it affects our attack and if we end up falling too far back, or if Chelsea start finding success wide and/or in the channels then we may end up becoming 'broken' in two, especially if we start with Henderson, Can and Wijnaldum, which has the potential of becoming a flat three rather than a '1-2' if Can and Wijnaldum drop off to cover the space around Henderson. If the attacking three subsequently drop back to close the space between them and the midfield, then it will become very difficult for us to score, apart from moments of isolated pressing. As such, if it's a choice between Firmino starting in his preferred central position or Lallana starting in his (which it may well be if Mane's not ready to start) then I think Lallana's pressing and runs make him more important if we want to retain some measure of attacking threat, especially if we elect to control space.
Bizarre scapegoating ignored, I'd be very surprised if Emre Can doesn't start, especially given Chelsea's combination play between the lines and it's possible Origi plays up front, especially if we opt to use long balls to catch Chelsea out, like we tried to do against City at times. If Firmino does start up front with Lallana wide, then it will be extra important for the back line to compress space, with the full backs in position to close down the wing backs while play is being switched to their side and the other three defenders shifting across quickly so the midfield doesn't have to fall back too far (which would isolate our attack).
It will obviously be a difficult game, especially given that Chelsea, unlike City, Arsenal or even Tottenham to a certain extent, are very fluid and very comfortable dropping into a low block and killing the space, something we've struggled against recently. That gives them an extra option if the game isn't going their way and will make it harder for us. Ideally, I think we'd want the game to be played in the middle of the pitch, giving us a little more space to play into on the counter but not falling too deep that we cede territory and struggle to get out. That makes it about our ability to stay balanced and compress space well, which is a difficult thing to do but at least something we've done before.
If we play well, I don't think a win is off the cards. If Chelsea get going (and we allow them to), then it will be a routine job for them. I just hope we find the balance.
