When Liverpool visit Kingsmeadow in May it will be the final league game of the season and could determine the destination of the Women’s Super League trophy… but this weekend sees the Blues’ make the trek north for the away clash between the teams, to face the Reds at Prenton Park.

They’ll be keeping their fingers crossed that there are no below-freezing temperatures or wintry showers after their last Merseyside visit ended in the match being called off because of a dangerous pitch just half an hour before the scheduled kick-off time.

It’s the Blues’ last WSL match of 2019, and Chelsea have won nine successive league games against Liverpool – the most victories of any side against a specific opponent in the competition. The Reds currently sit at the bottom of the table.

Liverpool have lost 12 of their 17 Women’s Super League games against Chelsea (indeed, only against Arsenal have the Reds tasted defeat on more occasions), but Chelsea manager Emma Hayes knows they must guard against complacency.

Chelsea are unbeaten in their last 25 Women’s Super League away trips, scoring 66 goals and conceding just 14. The Blues last defeat was a 1-0 loss to Man City in May 2017.

A win for Chelsea will ensure that the Blues remain in the top two heading in to the New Year. “We’re going into the game knowing that we want to finish this half of the season on the maximum number of points we can,” said Hayes, who has welcomed the chance for her players to then have a couple of weeks to recharge over Christmas.

“They play for 11 months of the year so they need time to recover,” she said. “They played a World Cup, most of them had three weeks off, that’s it. They get 10 days to breathe. If you want to perform at the Olympics next summer, where they’ll get another two to three weeks off, then you have to have a middle break for the players.”

Chelsea’s next home game has been moved forward for TV, and will now be played at 12.30pm on Sunday January 5 at Kingsmeadow. Tickets from the Chelsea club website.