The highlight of Matchday 2 in the 2020/21 Premier League season is undoubtedly the "big six" clash between Liverpool and Chelsea. Both sides won their first game last week, but neither looked particularly convincing.

Liverpool faced Leeds United, promoted into the Premier League this season after winning the Championship, and the game ended 4-3, with a Mo Salah goal in the 88th minute needed to guarantee three points for the Redmen. The defending champions were aggressive going forward, playing with the kind of flow that only comes with genuine chemistry, and were threatening most times they had the ball; they were also a total shambles going backwards and Marco Bielsa's men made it seem like Liverpool's weakness was to try and defend against a side playing like Liverpool.

On the other side of things, Chelsea beat Brighton 3-1, a scoreline that flattered to deceive. It was clear from the off that the players of this new look Chelsea side were still getting to grips with each other and it took a penalty from Jorginho in the 23rd minute to give them the confidence to, seemingly, start playing properly. Trossard equalized for Brighton in the 54th, Reece James made it 2-1 in the 56th and Kurt Zouma rounded things off for Chelsea 10 minutes later. The match suggested a level of scrappiness in Chelsea this year, they may be a side that needs to get roughhoused a little before they realize they're in a competitive game.

The time tested Liverpool method against a Chelsea in search of a new identity is likely to be the basis of tonight's fixture. After all, the combination of the pandemic and Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich loosening his purse strings mean priors count for little. The match is being played at Stamford Bridge, but absent of fans, it's not too different from the empty Anfield Liverpool played in last week. Home advantage won't be a factor.

The last time Chelsea beat Liverpool in the Premier League was on May 6, 2018 and since then Jurgen Klopp's men have had the advantage. Their last encounter, which took place on July 22 this year, was a 5-3 loss for Frank Lampard's men; Liverpool took an early 3-0 lead and then Chelsea attempted a spirited comeback in the second half, only to find themselves thwarted twice.

Had this occurred a season prior, the mental advantage would be with Liverpool. Chelsea were in the midst of a transfer ban meaning they would have the same squad today as the one that lost 5-3. This year, owner Abramovich - who is increasingly hands-off - has given manager Lampard the freedom to hire and fire as he pleased. Gone for good are Alvaro Morata, Willian and Pedro (among plenty of others) and in is a whole new set up.

Up front are former Bundesliga attackers Kai Havertz and Timo Werner, the star players of Bayer Leverkusen and Red Bull Leipzig respectively, while Hakim Ziyech has joined from Dutch giants Ajax. At the back are Thiago Silva and Ben Chilwell from Ligue 1 side Paris Saint-Germain and Premier League rivals Leicester City. And more could follow with the transfer window open until October 5 this season due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Compared to this, Liverpool's outlay has been limited. The deal to bring in Bayern Munich's treble winning midfielder Thiago was completed a few days ago, so he may not be starting this game, and the single important departure was that of Dejan Lovren who has moved to Zenit St. Petersburg. Diogo Jota, the Wolverhampton Wanderers forward, is expected to sign up in the coming days.

The beauty of football is that nobody is invincible and, even though this Liverpool squad is essentially the same one that trounced the league last year, Leeds United showed that without improvements and changes, weaknesses can and will be found out.

Will Chelsea be able to do that and make Liverpool look like yesterday's news, or will their work-in-progress squad have gaps for the attacking maestros of Anfield to exploit?