Deborah Akinyosoye
Chelsea came out on top in a wild match against Liverpool Saturday, with a thrilling 2-1 game in the English Premier League going the hosts’ way at Stamford Bridge.
Moisés Caicedo fired a thunderbolt home to give the Blues a first-half lead, but a renewed Liverpool equalized midway through the second half thanks to Cody Gakpo. With a wide-open approach from two short-handed teams creating plenty of drama, Chelsea claimed the game-winner six minutes into stoppage time as Estêvão found the back of the net.
The celebrations on the 18-year-old’s late winner were intense enough that Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca was given a second yellow card and sent off, but that didn’t dampen the mood for the Blues, who moved up to sixth place with the win.
That’s a big help, as Chelsea had lost three of their last six matches in all competitions, all coming in the last three weeks. With four center backs missing due to injury or suspension, it looked like more bad news was coming as this match played out. Benoît Badiashile and Josh Acheampong both came off with new injuries, but an ad-hoc Chelsea team still had enough to find a dramatic breakthrough.
The defeat adds to the feeling that something is off at Liverpool. Despite outspending all of their rivals to bolster the squad that won the Premier League last season, the Reds have now gone three straight matches without a win, something that hasn’t happened to the club since the late stages of the 2022-23 season.