Chelsea have been crying out for a statement win for quite some time. Not only under Enzo Maresca or the Clearlake Capital-Todd Boehly ownership, this is a club which surrendered its place as an elite club without much of a whimper.
Their Premier League finishes in the past two seasons demonstrate this as well as anything. Chelsea have simply not been a force to be reckoned with in any sense of the phrase.
They have not been consistent, they have not been able to challenge those at the top in one-off matches and come out with three points. They have found ways to lose even when the circumstances are heavily in their favour.
When Chelsea and Liverpool met last season in the Carabao Cup final this much was obvious. A depleted starting XI and bench under Jürgen Klopp took advantage of Chelsea's mental fragility. Mauricio Pochettino's side wilted when the game should have swung in their favour.
For much of the first nine months under Maresca, meetings with those above or just around Chelsea have followed a similar pattern. Manchester City, for example, have been at their worst ebb for over a decade and still did the double over Chelsea without being made to work too hard.
Arne Slot insists that Chelsea deserved to win the reverse league fixture with Liverpool but underlying numbers and managerial vibes do not equate to points when it matters. Mikel Arteta said Chelsea were one of the best attacking teams around after Marc Cucurella was the only player to have a shot on target against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium earlier this year. The two wins over Tottenham are just that, over Tottenham. It is one for the fans but not to prove Chelsea are heading upwards.
So just how different was this? Chelsea turned up in front of their own supporters in a 4.30pm kick off. They won the late Sunday for the first time since doing so against Tottenham in 2022 under Thomas Tuchel.
History was not on their side. Liverpool were unbeaten in 20 matches in May dating back to their last loss at Stamford Bridge in 2018. Chelsea's record against newly crowned champions is poor, as is the already described form against the top six.
The caveat here is that this was a rotated Liverpool side - albeit perhaps not with as many changes as many expected. They were still extremely strong and, as Maresca said afterwards, are rightful champions.
So here are the factors twisting in Chelsea's favour. Many had pointed out that if there was to be a good time to face Liverpool then maybe it was now. Slot has nothing to play for other than pride. There are no points records or unbeaten fantasies to go after.
Liverpool were simply in a celebratory mood and the away end party continued even when they conceded. Maybe this played into the performance, maybe it didn't. Slot said as much afterwards.
To dimish this Chelsea result like this would be wrong, though. The telling part of this Liverpool display was intensity and speed from the off. It meant more to Chelsea and you could tell. That is a good for Maresca. The tide was turned for him and his team made it count.
This has not always been apparent for Chelsea even when they have had no choice but to raise things. The stakes were high, though, albeit only for one side.
Maybe Newcastle United's draw to Brighton galvanised the team. Maybe it is the varying qualities of the previous two weeks with wins over Fulham and Everton (as well as the confidence-boosting Conference League display earlier this week as well). Maybe it was some of the hatred on show during the guard of honour as Chelsea fans booed their opponents. This was no time for respect but time to get serious.
There was an energy about Chelsea on Sunday that has not always been there and has been missing for most of 2025. Romeo Lavia's presence at the heart of midfield certainly makes a difference.
He rolled Harvey Elliot - a brilliant player but starting his first league game all season, and it showed - inside three minutes and popped a pass through the lines to Cole Palmer, who was perfectly situated. This is exactly what Maresca wants his team to do and Lavia is crucial to it all happening. He is the one with a blend of physicality, dribbling, and passing that the Chelsea midfield does not have.
From there, Palmer timed his lay off to Pedro Neto. He carried forward against Kostas Tsimikas and managed to find Enzo Fernandez, ready to slot home. The timing and manner of the goal sent a message.
Chelsea had carved through the champions inside three minutes and were not here to play a part in another ceremonial day. Hungover or not, Chelsea were not in the mood for niceties as they have been too often since the turn of the year.
Lavia snapped into tackles, sensing Elliott's rust and ignoring where his own should have been, showing no signs of it and instead relishing the opportunity to impress against the team that tried desperately to sign him.
Liverpool supporters may have chanted "you could have signed for the champions" and "you could have won the league" when he went off but by that time he had completely dominated them and was being given a standing ovation by Stamford Bridge. In response, one Chelsea supporter stood and cried out in hope "you stay fit please." Quite.
Moises Caicedo, surely a worthy player of the season for Chelsea, is so versatile he was moved to right-back again to make room for Lavia. He was tested by Cody Gakpo but matched the challenge and jumped into tackles whilst working well in triangles with a truly tireless Neto.
This was such a team performance from Chelsea, who raised their levels exactly when they had no other choice. Levi Colwill has had a tough second season but excelled here next to Trevoh Chalobah. The latter was one of four who could reasonably be considered for man of the match.
Chalobah constantly thwarted Liverpool and was a magnet for the ball in the air and twice produced shot-saving blocks as the last line of defence. Marc Cucurella doubled up on Mohamed Salah with Noni Madueke. Such was the shut out, Chelsea became the only team in the league this season to limit him to a single shot in both matches - and the game in October saw that come from a penalty.
Madueke was again moved to the left after trialling there against Everton so he could run at Trent Alexander-Arnold this time and he caused lots of problems, combining with Fernandez to either slice through Liverpool or stretch them. The winger was constantly calling for the ball when in space on the left and hugged the touchline to keep Chelsea's coverage well spread.
Then there is Palmer. He was close to extending his goal drought but found a penalty at the ideal time. Palmer had been sensational before converting past Alisson and grew in stature from an uncertain start to being back to his best by the end.
When he terrorised Conor Bradley near the end, bursting down the left and working a shot at a ridiculous angle, hitting the post felt impossible, let alone scoring. Palmer had tried several ambitious passes when Chelsea were on the break after half time as Liverpool took control of the ball and he hadn't quite got it right. Deciding to dribble the ball in, Palmer generated an almighty roar of his chant from the stadium in a moment of sheer catharsis after five months of being in an inescapable limbo. It still looked like the ball wouldn't go in for him at this point as well.
Cole Palmer celebrates as Chelsea beat Liverpool 3-1 in the Premier League
Cole Palmer celebrates as Chelsea beat Liverpool 3-1 in the Premier League (Image: Getty Images)
The fact that the worst performance came from Nicolas Jackson - he just had one of those Jackson afternoons - says it all because he was also cheered off and given a huge applause. The Stamford Bridge faithful chanted his name as he passed each stand and although Jackson was dejected, he had made life tough for Virgil van Dijk and Quansah through.
He may have run offside, missed his passes, and failed to get away dangerous shots (or the right ones) but he constantly asked questions and kept Liverpool honest. That was the sort of all-encompassing effort this was from Chelsea
There were times when it looked nervy but only because Chelsea could sense their opportunity. At one stage in the second half both Neto and Palmer vented towards Jackson for not offering for the ball and it was Palmer again who turned his back in frustration when the striker didn't time his run and Madueke played through a pass, wasting a dangerous counter-attacking chance.
Maresca himself was just as animated as always. In contrast to what he has done for much of this season he actually shouted out in anger when Chelsea chose against playing the ball forward, instead choosing to send one back to Robert Sanchez in goal. What the head coach valued here was his team's adaptability and resilience.
He clapped Madueke for charging down a Liverpool clearance and also Colwill when leaping for a header and picking the right time to slow play down. His reaction when Caicedo was fouled in stoppage time to win Palmer the penalty was as if Chelsea had just scored.
That came at the end of a frantic 10 minutes. Fernandez had gone off and Chelsea, still relentless on the break thanks to Neto's selfless sprints up and down the pitch, were dropping deep to defend their box. They had done for large spells of the game, not something which Maresca had planned (he stressed) but that became a valid ploy given how well they were holding Liverpool off.
Caicedo had stayed down on the turf after heading a ball back to Sanchez, such was the way Chelsea had been exerting themselves. Fernandez could hardly watch on from the bench as he leant over the seat in front of him, clutching at the head rest and getting increasingly animated.
Willy Caballero barked instructions to the Chelsea players, demanding that they get back into shape. He need not have worried because Palmer typified the unity as he shot to his right to close down and organise late on.
This was the spirit that Chelsea brought to the table. Their opponents could not match it and this now gives supporters genuine optimism rather than simply hope that the end-of-season run can bring more positivity. It is Newcastle next in surely the biggest challenge remaining, but Chelsea will head there in form and with belief rather than blind or misplaced promise.
Just as big as the three points is what this sort of result - Liverpool caveats aside - can do for Chelsea both now and maybe even next season.
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Chelsea ended the 2023/24 Premier League season on a high, but it is never quiet at Stamford Bridge and the summer looks set to be one full of news, with question marks over Mauricio Pochettino's future at the club and plenty of talk around transfers.
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