Liverpool vs Chelsea live updates: Premier League team news ...

On the latest episode of The Totally Football Show, Jimbo welcomes Rory Smith, Duncan Alexander and Benji Lanyado into the pod after a seismic week in English football.

The Premier League is back with Tuchel’s old club travelling to leaders Liverpool. Two impressive new managers in Slot and Maresca - who will come out on top?

Their chat about today's game begins 33 minutes in.

Listen here!

If you're just joining us, hello again and welcome along to The Athletic's live coverage of Liverpool vs Chelsea.

It's a brisk autumn day on Merseyside and everyone is looking forward to (hopefully) an entertaining Premier League match.

Over the next few hours before kick-off we'll have all the latest team news, quotes, stats, features, and more.

So don't go anywhere - we've got you covered.

Premier League football is a weekly exercise in high-stakes problem-solving. Like most coaches, Enzo Maresca knows when his team does not have all the answers.

There was a reason, beyond mere expectation management, why Maresca insisted before the international break that Chelsea are not ready to compete with Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool at the top of the Premier League just yet.

The contrasting experiences of their last two league games at Stamford Bridge, including a lack of discipline against Nottingham Forest, succinctly summed up why.

Read more below

GO FURTHER

Enzo Maresca needs solutions as injuries and bans threaten Chelsea progress

Chelsea 1-1 Nottingham Forest (Madueke; Wood)

After three straight wins in the Premier League for Chelsea, five in all competitions, they were held to a draw at Stamford Bridge by Nottingham Forest in their last match.

And they had to do it from behind after Chris Wood broke the deadlock soon after half-time. Noni Madueke pulled Chelsea level just before the hour mark and the hosts were given a great opportunity to get the win when James Ward-Prowse was shown a second yellow card.

But, despite their late pressure, they couldn't find a late winner and had to settle for a point.

Liverpool are the early leaders for the best defence in the league competition. Arne Slot's side have conceded just two league goals in their opening seven games — four fewer than the teams joint-second lowest before this weekend, Arsenal and Nottingham Forest.

In their 10 matches in all competitions, Liverpool have conceded just four goals and kept six clean sheets. That is a significant improvement from last season when they kept the same amount of clean sheets in their final 27 games.

The underlying numbers are also encouraging, and though Liverpool have had favourable fixtures so far, you can only play what is in front of you and so far it is going well.

Read more below

GO FURTHER

Liverpool have the best defence in the Premier League – can they maintain it?

Crystal Palace 0-1 Liverpool (Jota)

Before the international break, Liverpool edged past winless Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park. But that barely tells the story of the match.

Diogo Jota put the finishing touches to a sweeping attacking move to give the visitors the lead, but Palace improved in the second half.

The hosts felt they should have had a penalty after some penalty-area contact on Marc Guehi from Virgil van Dijk before Eberechi Eze missed the simplest of chances to make it 1-1.

Not convincing, but three points away from home are not to be sniffed at for Arne Slot's side.

What does the table tell us about Chelsea's season?

You could say Chelsea have simply continued where they left off under former head coach Mauricio Pochettino.

Statistics showed they were the fourth-best team (by points accrued) in the Premier League from late December until the final game of last season, and fourth is where they sat coming into this weekend under Enzo Maresca.

Chelsea are six points better off than they were at this stage last year, which suggests Maresca has got his message across quicker than Pochettino.

What doesn’t it tell us?

Chelsea’s home form has been a disappointment. Losing at home to four-in-a-row title winners City in their opening match is perhaps understandable, but 1-1 draws with Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest at Stamford Bridge were missed opportunities.

Goals have been easy to come by (16) but a shortage of clean sheets — two in the seven games — indicates Maresca is still working on finding the best balance between defence and attack.

What does the table tell us about Liverpool’s season?

It shows the transition from one era to another at Anfield has been a lot smoother than anyone anticipated. Yes, being top after seven matches (before yesterday's matches) doesn’t mean much, but there has been a lot to admire about the opening months of Arne Slot’s reign.

Six wins out of seven is impressive, with the only blip coming at home against Nottingham Forest straight after the September international break when Liverpool delivered a sluggish display.

They have been playing with a lot more control under Slot and that’s reflected in the fact they have conceded just two league goals — the best defensive record in the division.

What doesn’t it tell us?

The underlying numbers are excellent. Coming into this weekend, Liverpool were also top when it comes to their non-penalty xG difference per game of 1.27. Those six victories have been thoroughly deserved with them packing a punch at one end and being miserly at the other.

However, for context, all the teams they have beaten so far currently sit in the bottom half of the table. We will learn a lot more about what’s realistic for Slot’s side in the coming weeks as the calibre of opposition improves.

Today's visit of Chelsea is followed by a trip to Arsenal next weekend. There are also league games against Brighton and Aston Villa on the horizon.

GO FURTHER

What the Premier League table does (and does not) tell us about each club

Seven of the 10 matches this Premier League gameweek have already taken place.

The eight comes from Molineux where Wolves host Manchester City, the ninth is this match at Anfield and the last game of the weekend is Nottingham Forest vs Crystal Palace at the City Ground tomorrow evening.

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Anfield, Liverpool

Is there a stadium more evocative of an old-fashioned British atmosphere than Liverpool's home ground?

The 61,276-capacity stadium, opened in 1884, has a (deserved) reputation for being one of the noisiest arenas to play football on this island.

It will be packed to the rafters later.

Here are a selection of broadcasters if you're tuning in to the action on TV:

Good morning, afternoon, or evening, depending on where you are in the world, and welcome to The Athletic.

Today, we've got the big one: Liverpool vs Chelsea.

Two sides in form, in the top four, and with lofty aspirations facing off at a packed and raucous Anfield.

What's not to like?