Liverpool XI vs Chelsea: Confirmed team news, predicted lineup and injury latest for Premier League

Liverpool are walking into a storm at Stamford Bridge and the build up to this Premier League clash has already been filled with tension, fear, and frustration. The Reds, who are defending champions and one of the most feared sides in Europe, suddenly look fragile. Injuries have struck at the worst possible time, confidence has been shaken after defeats, and Arne Slot is already under pressure to prove that his revolution at Anfield will not collapse before it even takes full shape.

The big headline is clear: Liverpool will be without their world-class goalkeeper Alisson Becker when they face Chelsea. The Brazilian giant, the man who has saved the club countless times with impossible stops, the man who commands his box with authority and calmness, will not be between the sticks. He injured his hamstring in the Champions League defeat to Galatasaray, and that moment changed everything. Liverpool fans who were watching saw him signal to the bench, saw the pain on his face, and they knew instantly that something was wrong. You could hear the silence fall across the away end in Istanbul. Alisson is not just any player, he is one of the most important footballers in the entire squad. When he is missing, Liverpool feel exposed.

Arne Slot confirmed the news with a heavy heart. He tried to play it calm in front of the media, but his words carried the weight of disappointment. He admitted that Alisson will not play for Brazil during the international break and that it would be a surprise to see him back for the game immediately after it. That means Chelsea this weekend is out, Manchester United could also be out, and no one knows exactly how long the recovery will take. Hamstrings are tricky, Slot explained. Sometimes they heal quickly, sometimes they take longer, and rushing a player back too early can destroy a season completely. Liverpool have seen this before, and they will be careful. But careful means vulnerable, and vulnerable is the last thing you want to be when you are about to face Chelsea away from home.

Into this storm steps Giorgi Mamardashvili, the Georgian goalkeeper who joined Liverpool in the summer. This is not how he imagined his big Premier League debut. Of course he wanted to play, of course he dreamed of nights under the lights at Stamford Bridge, but he would have preferred to wait, to learn under Alisson, to ease his way in. Now there is no time. He is the man Liverpool will trust to protect them. He already played against Galatasaray for the final 35 minutes, and he was also used in the Carabao Cup win over Southampton, but this is different. This is Stamford Bridge, this is the Premier League, this is Chelsea versus Liverpool, one of the biggest fixtures in the world. The pressure will be like nothing he has ever experienced before.

Behind him will be Freddie Woodman, another summer arrival, ready as backup. The goalkeeping department looks fresh, but fresh does not mean settled. Liverpool fans are used to Alisson’s calm, his leadership, his big saves. Now they must place their faith in a 24-year-old Georgian who has never started a Premier League match. This is how stories are written. This is how legends begin, or how disasters unfold.

As if losing Alisson was not enough, Liverpool also suffered another injury blow in Istanbul. Hugo Ekitike, the exciting French forward, limped off against Galatasaray. The young attacker has been full of energy and promise since arriving, and Slot had big plans for him. The manager still believes there is hope. He told reporters that he is optimistic Ekitike will feature against Chelsea. But optimism is not certainty. Fitness tests will decide, and even if he is cleared to play, there will always be doubts about whether he can last the ninety minutes.

Fortunately, Alexander Isak is available. Liverpool’s record signing was kept on the bench in Istanbul, along with Mohamed Salah, but both came on in the second half. That was part of Slot’s plan, to rotate, to keep them fresh. Now they will be ready to start at Stamford Bridge. Salah will lead the attack, Isak will provide power and movement, and Florian Wirtz, Dominik Szoboszlai, and Alexis Mac Allister will give creativity and control. On paper it looks frightening. On paper it looks like Liverpool have enough to destroy any team. But football is not played on paper. Form matters. Confidence matters. Injuries matter. And Liverpool are walking into this match with too many shadows hanging over them.

The injury list grew longer with Federico Chiesa. The Italian winger missed the Galatasaray game with what Slot described as a “little niggle.” Those words sound light, but fans know the truth—injuries at Liverpool never feel little. Every absence looks big because of the pressure of the season. Chiesa will be assessed, but no one can guarantee he will be ready. His pace, his creativity, his unpredictability, all of that would be missed.

And then there is Giovanni Leoni, the unlucky new signing who suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament on his debut against Southampton. The pictures were heartbreaking. A young player full of dreams, making his first appearance, suddenly in agony, clutching his knee. Surgery has already been done, and Slot confirmed he will be out for around a year. One year gone, one year of his career taken away before it even began at Liverpool. The squad will move on, but for Leoni it is a lonely road of rehabilitation and recovery.

So what will Liverpool look like at Stamford Bridge? The predicted XI has already taken shape. Giorgi Mamardashvili in goal, Conor Bradley at right-back, Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konaté in central defence, Milos Kerkez at left-back. In midfield, Ryan Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister will provide balance, while Salah, Szoboszlai, and Wirtz operate behind Isak. It is a 4-2-3-1 system, Slot’s preferred shape, but it is not just about the names, it is about how they connect. This team has talent, but it must find rhythm, it must find courage, it must find chemistry.

The game will be at 5:30pm BST on Saturday October 4, 2025. The place: Stamford Bridge, London. The occasion: Chelsea versus Liverpool, live on Sky Sports. Millions will watch across the world, millions will debate every kick, and for Liverpool fans, every moment will be filled with nerves.

Chelsea will look at Liverpool’s injury crisis and smell blood. They will want to attack Mamardashvili, they will want to test him early, they will want to use the noise of Stamford Bridge to unsettle him. They know Alisson is missing, and they know Liverpool’s defence has already shown cracks in recent weeks. Maresca’s men will throw everything at the young goalkeeper. It will be a battle of survival.

For Liverpool, the message is clear: stand together. Salah must rise to the occasion, Isak must justify his price tag, Van Dijk must lead with authority, and Mamardashvili must become a hero. The squad is thin, the absentees are worrying, but this is what being a Liverpool player is all about. When the world doubts you, when rivals smell weakness, you fight harder, you dig deeper, you find something inside yourself.

Arne Slot knows he is being judged already. Two defeats in a row is never acceptable at Liverpool, three would be a crisis. The fans demand reaction. They demand fire, passion, commitment. Stamford Bridge has never been an easy place to visit, but sometimes the hardest games are the ones that define seasons. If Liverpool come through this storm, they will leave London with belief restored. If they fail, the questions will grow louder, the critics will circle, and Slot’s project will be tested even further.

Injuries are part of football, but timing is everything. Losing Alisson, losing Leoni, doubts over Ekitike and Chiesa, all just before Chelsea—it feels cruel, it feels like fate testing Liverpool’s strength. But champions are not judged by how they play when everything is easy. They are judged by how they respond when everything is difficult.

So when Saturday comes, and the Liverpool players walk out onto the Stamford Bridge pitch, when Giorgi Mamardashvili takes his place in front of the travelling fans, when Salah adjusts his armband and Van Dijk roars his instructions, the story will begin. Will it be the night Liverpool announce that nothing will break them? Or will it be the night Chelsea expose their weaknesses? The answer will be written in ninety minutes of sweat, noise, drama, and heart.

And whatever happens, this will not just be a football match. It will be a test of character, a test of belief, a test of how deep Liverpool can dig when their backs are against the wall. Injuries have made them weaker, but sometimes weakness is the beginning of strength. The world will watch. Stamford Bridge will shake. And Liverpool will discover who they really are.