Conor Bradley put in a memorable performance by scoring his first Liverpool goal and grabbing two assists as the Reds beat Chelsea to maintain their grip on top of the Premier League.
Jurgen Klopp’s side went into this round of fixtures five points clear at the top and, with Arsenal and Manchester City winning their games against Nottingham Forest and Burnley respectively, the Anfield side needed to do the same against the Blues.
Having beaten Bournemouth 4-0 in the previous league, they again put in a confident and dominant display to sweep Chelsea aside.
Darwin Nunez hit the woodwork twice in the opening stages – and four times in total – before Diogo Jota showed great tenacity to weave his way through defenders to tap in Bradley’s pass.
The 20-year-old Northern Ireland international, who has emerged as a very exciting talent at Liverpool this season, got the goal his recent impressive displays warranted as he raced into the box from the right before driving into the far corner.
Liverpool should have been 3-0 up at half-time but Nunes hit the post from the penalty spot after Jota was brought down.
![Darwin Nunez volleys against Chelsea](https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/onesport/cps/624/cpsprodpb/C01D/production/_132518194_darwinnunez.jpg)
![Darwin Nunez volleys against Chelsea](https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/onesport/cps/624/cpsprodpb/C01D/production/_132518194_darwinnunez.jpg)
Mykhailo Mudryk missed a great chance to halve the deficit after the break when he struck high over the bar with Alisson to beat.
Dominik Szoboszlai punished Chelsea for that mistake as he grabbed Liverpool’s third, heading in Bradley’s cross, and although Christopher Nkunku headed in a consolation for the visitors, Luis Diaz added a fourth late on with a close-range strike .
It was the perfect result for the Reds to both maintain their lead at the top of the Premier League and boost their confidence ahead of facing Chelsea again in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley on February 25.
Bradley shines as the Reds look determined to send Klopp flying high
This was Liverpool’s second game since Klopp’s shock announcement will leave the club at the end of the season after eight years at the club.
The first game following the news was an emotional FA Cup fourth-round clash between Norwich and Anfield on Sunday, and it’s clear both from that performance and now that Klopp’s men are determined to ensure that his final season at the club will end in memorable fashion.
Liverpool ran five goals past Norwich to win 5-2 and could easily have had as many in a dominant first half against Chelsea, with the hapless Nunes hitting the woodwork three times.
But the night belonged to the outstanding Bradley, who once again rose to the occasion despite compatriot full-back Trent Alexander-Arnold on the bench, and deservedly received a standing ovation when he came off in the second half.
A night of penalty shootouts for Chelsea
Chelsea have shown some improvement under Mauricio Pochettino in recent months, particularly at Stamford Bridge where they have not lost in all competitions since October 28.
There is, however, plenty of room for improvement in their away form as they arrive at Anfield having lost five of their last six away games in all competitions.
A win here never looked likely, but Chelsea will be aggrieved to have had a couple of penalty decisions go against them which could have made for a closer encounter.
First, appeals were waved away when Conor Gallagher went down in the box under pressure from Virgil van Dijk, who later appeared to cut down Nkunku inside the box in the second half.
Nkunku’s goal was a positive for the visitors on his return from injury, but in the end they were second best as Liverpool produced a display that will make their title rivals sit up and take notice.
How to play
Rate players out of 10 during or after the game. The scorer will close 30 minutes after the final whistle.
Score range key = Give it up = Pure perfection
Chelsea
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Group number28Name of playerPetrovich
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Group number2Name of playerDashie
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Group number6Name of playerThiago Silva
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Group number5Name of playerBadiashile
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Group number21Name of playerChilwell
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Group number25Name of playerCaicedo
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Group number8Name of playerFernandez
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Group number11Name of playerMadueke
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Group number23Name of playerGallagher
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Group number7Name of playerPure
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Group number20Name of playerPilgrim
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Group number10Name of playerMudryk
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Group number17Name of playerChukwuemeka
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Group number18Name of playerNkunku
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Group number27Name of playerHeat
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Group number31Name of playerCasadei
Lining up
Liverpool
Formation 4-3-3
- 1Alison
- 84BradleySubstituted forAlexander-Arnoldin the 68′minutes
- 5ConatéReservation at 76 minutes
- 4van Dyck
- 2GomezSubstituted forRobertsonin the 69′minutes
- 8SzoboszlaiSubstituted forEliotin the 69′minutes
- 10McAllister
- 17JonesSubstituted forClarkin the 83′minutes
- 20YotaSubstituted forGakpoin the 68′minutes
- 9NúñezReservation at 47 minutes
- 7Diaz
Substitutes
- 18Gakpo
- 19Eliot
- 26Robertson
- 38Gravenberch
- 42Clark
- 53McConnell
- 62Kelleher
- 66Alexander-Arnold
- 78Quansah
Chelsea
Formation 4-2-3-1
- 28Petrovich
- 2DashieReservation at 41 minutes
- 6Thiago Silva
- 5Badiashile
- 21ChilwellBook in 35 minutesSubstituted forHeatin the 45′minutes
- 25CaicedoReservation at 11 minutesSubstituted forChukwuemekain the 66′minutes
- 8FernandezReservation at 33 minutes
- 11MaduekeSubstituted forMudrykin the 45′minutes
- 23GallagherSubstituted forNkunkuin the 45′minutes
- 7Pure
- 20PilgrimSubstituted forCasadeiin the 85′minutes
Substitutes
- 10Mudryk
- 17Chukwuemeka
- 18Nkunku
- 19Broja
- 27Heat
- 31Casadei
- 36de Souza Eugenio
- 42Gilchrist
- 47Bergstrom
Live text
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End of match, Liverpool 4, Chelsea 1.
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End of second half, Liverpool 4, Chelsea 1.
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Cody Gakpo (Liverpool) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
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Foul by Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea).
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Bobby Clarke (Liverpool) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by Raheem Sterling (Chelsea).
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Corner, Chelsea. Contributed by Ibrahima Konaté.
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Cody Gakpo (Liverpool) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
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Foul by Raheem Sterling (Chelsea).
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Attempt saved. Cody Gakpo (Liverpool) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom left corner.
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Delay is over. They are ready to continue.
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Delay in match due to injury to Alexis McAllister (Liverpool).
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Alexis Mac Allister (Liverpool) wins a free kick on the left wing.
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Foul by Raheem Sterling (Chelsea).
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Change for Chelsea. Cesare Casadei replaces Cole Palmer.
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Attempt saved. Darwin Núñez (Liverpool) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the center of the goal. With help from Harvey Elliott.
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Alexis McAllister (Liverpool) wins a free kick on the right wing.
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Foul by Christopher Nkunku (Chelsea).
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Change, Liverpool. Bobby Clarke replaces Curtis Jones.
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Foul by Alexis McAllister (Liverpool).