Pochettino era begins as Chelsea fight back to draw with Liverpool
By Story Agencies, August 13, 2023Chelsea began the Mauricio Pochettino era with a 1-1 draw against Liverpool in a hard-fought encounter at Stamford Bridge on the opening weekend of the Premier League.
Liverpool were dealt an early blow before arriving at Stamford Bridge after Moises Caicedo appeared to turn them down in favour of Chelsea despite agreeing to a British record Ksh20 billion transfer with Brighton for the midfielder on Friday.
But it was Liverpool that struck first as Luis Diaz ghosted in at the back post to convert Mohamed Salah’s fine through ball after a mix-up in the Chelsea defence to slot home. Chelsea equalised through debutant defender Axel Disasi – one of four for the new-look Blues – from close-range after a corner.
Goals ruled out
Salah and Ben Chilwell both had goals ruled out by the VAR for tight offsides in an action-packed first half in which the Liverpool forward struck the bar. Had Chelsea been more clinical, though, Pochettino could have been taking home all three points in his first outing as Blues boss.