Predictions for the League Cup Final

Wembley Stadium sets the stage for a mouth-watering League Cup final between familiar foes Chelsea and Liverpool on Sunday, February 25. 

With reigning holders Manchester United out of the way, the upcoming showpiece will crown a new champion. 

Making Liverpool the first team in League Cup history to win ten titles would be a fitting end to Jurgen Klopp’s illustrious managerial career at Anfield.

In his farewell campaign, the German manager is eager to steer the Reds to Premier League glory while keeping close tabs on both domestic cup competitions.

Standing in his way is an old adversary, Mauricio Pochettino, who has a unique opportunity to salvage a disastrous maiden season in charge of Chelsea. 

The five-time League Cup winners seem destined for another underwhelming mid-table finish in the Premier League, putting the emphasis on achieving a standout result in this competition.

Liverpool odds-on favourites

Despite highlighting the importance of taking one step at a time ahead of Liverpool’s Premier League fixture against Luton Town (via Liverpool.com), Klopp must be keeping one eye on the upcoming final. 

The Reds showed no mercy to Chelsea when the two sides met in Premier League action in late January, steamrolling to a thumping 4-1 victory at Anfield. 

But Klopp knows better than to harbour his optimism based on a single contest, especially as Liverpool’s seven previous clashes against the Blues had ended level. 

At the same time, he’d be forgiven for expecting a landslide success in the grand final amidst the Merseyside heavyweights’ impressive start to the new calendar year.

Except for a 3-1 loss to fellow Premier League title rivals Arsenal, they’ve gone unbeaten in all nine remaining matches in domestic football (W8, D1), including back-to-back multi-goal margin wins in the aftermath. 

Chelsea’s road to redemption

Chelsea clocked up the joint-biggest victory in a League Cup semi-final second leg after overhauling a 1-0 first-leg defeat with an overwhelming 6-1 win over Middlesbrough to set up this tie.

Pochettino’s side maintained their scintillating cup form with a 3-1 humbling of Aston Villa in the FA Cup fourth-round replay before holding perennial Premier League champions Manchester City to a 1-1 draw.

The Blues’ stoic performance at the Etihad Stadium prompted rave reviews from the Argentine manager in the post-match conference as he praised the team’s fighting spirit via the club’s website.

Buoyed by a three-game unbeaten streak (W2, D1), Chelsea will touch down at Wembley in high spirits, albeit cautious, after failing to beat Liverpool for nearly three years.

League Cup Final Betting

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History paints bleak picture for Blues

Since last lifting the League Cup trophy in 2014/15, Chelsea have lost both title-deciding encounters afterwards, with none other than Liverpool getting the better of the Blues in the 2021/22 showpiece.  

While the Pensioners’ record in their nine previous appearances in the grand final is merely positive (W5, L4), their manager has proved a serial loser on English soil.

Pochettino was in the Tottenham Hotspur dugout the last time Chelsea conquered the League Cup, finishing on the receiving end of a 2-0 scoreline in the 2014/15 showdown.

As if that’s not concerning enough, his only other attempt to lead Spurs to a long-awaited piece of silverware came crashing at the feet of Liverpool in the 2018/19 Champions League final. 

Time to turn the tables

Chelsea’s emphatic semi-final comeback made them only the third club to reach a 10th League Cup final appearance.

Pochettino exorcised his Tottenham demons during his brief stint at Paris Saint-Germain and will be keen to prove he’s no pushover on this landmark occasion. 

If the Blues’ performances against Villa and Man City were anything to go by, Sunday’s meeting will not be a one-way traffic, as was the case at Anfield a month ago. 

Though Liverpool will have the upper hand, Chelsea probably need this trophy more and will use that desperate desire as an added motive to upset the apple cart at Wembley.

Raheem Sterling has returned to form after a rough patch, and he could be the catalyst to inspire the Blues to a much-required triumph at the most iconic English venue.

He was on the scoresheet against Man City and will be out to maintain his form resurgence against another of his former clubs. 

With that in mind, maybe it’s time for Pochettino to give Chelsea fans something to cheer about and silence his doubters.