Chelsea star gives Liverpool verdict after back-to-back defeats for Premier League champions

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Marc Cucurella reckons Chelsea have a golden "opportunity" to pile further misery on Liverpool this weekend. The Blues host Arne Slot's outfit at Stamford Bridge on Saturday evening.

The Reds arrive in west London looking fragile, having suffered defeats in their previous two outings. Liverpool were undone by a late strike at Crystal Palace last weekend before falling to Turkish outfit Galatasaray in the Champions League on Tuesday.

Cucurella feels this weekend's encounter presents an excellent chance for Chelsea to claim what would be a statement triumph.

When quizzed on whether his team felt confident going into the fixture, the Spanish full-back responded: "Yeah, I think so.

"Liverpool is a big team but I think we play at home. We have a good opportunity."

"We had a tough result last game and I think we have a good opportunity to win three points before the international break."

Whilst Liverpool stumbled against Galatasaray on Tuesday evening, Chelsea managed to claim success with a narrow 1-0 triumph over Portuguese opponents Benfica.

Despite returning to winning ways, the Blues still need to find their rhythm in the Premier League. Enzo Maresca's squad have been beaten in both of their most recent league encounters against Manchester United and Brighton.

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The Italian manager has indicated his desire for his team to advance in the Champions League, though has called on his players to focus their efforts on this weekend's clash.

"First of all, the target is to continue the next stage, but if we are able to finish top eight, that is very good for us," Maresca said. "Now we have six more games.

"We will see if we are able to recover also players, that for us is so important. But now the focus is more for Saturday's game. Then we have the international break that we are waiting because we can have players back.

"You see tonight Benoit Badiashile, he was very good. So if we are able to recover players, that's what we need."

Chelsea face a mounting injury crisis ahead of this weekend's fixture. Long-term casualties Levi Colwill, Liam Delap and Dario Essugo remain unavailable.

Cole Palmer, Tosin Adarabioyo and Wesley Fofana are all fitness concerns. Meanwhile, defender Trevoh Chalobah is also set to miss out after receiving his marching orders against Brighton in their previous outing.

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