Andy Robertson will not feature for Liverpool against Chelsea. He got a red card for his challenge on Emerson Royal against Tottenham Hotspur. As a result, the Scottish international faced a three-match ban as a consequence. He faced the first match of his ban against Leicester in the EFL cup fixture. However, Liverpool’s match against Leeds is postponed due to the COVID outbreak in Leeds’ camp. Therefore, the ban is now extended till January 2nd when Liverpool faces Chelsea.
Andy Roberston is a very important player for Liverpool. He has played a huge role in all the big games for the Reds. If Liverpool fails to win against Chelsea then they will lose some ground in their title challenge. This will also grant Chelsea a few important points to get back in the title race.
The 27-year-old got an assist and scored a goal against Tottenham Hotspur. However, his reckless challenge got him a red card and put an end to an amazing performance. Although Kostas Tsimikas has done well whenever Robertson is an absentee, a pressure game against Chelsea is where Robertson would thrive.
Andy Robertson is one important source of Liverpool’s chance creation. Chelsea is praised for their defensive performances. As a result, Liverpool will miss Roberston’s presence on the left and the attacking prowess he possesses. Moreover, Liverpool can also lose Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, and Naby Keita if they fail to delay their departure to the African Cup of Nations.
Why Robertson is a huge loss against Chelsea for Liverpool?
Andy Robertson is one of the core players of Liverpool. He has been instrumental in Liverpool’s success over the years. However, he will miss a huge and important game for Liverpool against Chelsea. The Scot got a red card against Tottenham in a thrilling 2-2 draw. This was Liverpool’s first red card in more than 2 years. Robertson was involved in both the goals that Liverpool scored. He is famously known for his offensive awareness and his aggression. Klopp does have Tsimikas but he is still not as experienced as Robertson.
He averages 1.9 key passes in the Premier League and has 5 assists on his name. He also crosses the ball 1.4 times on an average and provides 1.6 long balls per game (stats via whoscored). All of these stats are very important when facing a big club like Chelsea. Although Chelsea are also experiencing a dip in their form but they will be very motivated to beat Liverpool. Tsmikas has big boots to fill up against Chelsea. Liverpool may also try to play mostly on the right with Alexander-Arnold and Mohamed Salah (if available).
Andy Robertson somehow avoided an injury from a bad tackle from Harry Kane. He could have been out for months if he had not jumped on time. However, Kane received just a yellow card for such a horrific challenge. A suspension of three games is anyways better than a season-ending injury. This is one positive that Liverpool can take out of this situation. Tsimkas will give it his all against Chelsea to prove that he can challenge Andy Robertson for a place in the playing 11 as he has done previously.
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