The friendly derby, they call it. Oh, the irony. Liverpool’s clash with Everton has resulted in more Red cards than any other game in the Premier League and expect the game to be a feisty one tomorrow.
Liverpool will take on their arch-rivals at Goodison Park tomorrow fresh from their shock win over Manchester City. While the result wasn’t a shock, the scoreline reverberated around the world. Jurgen Klopp’s side were three goals to the good by halftime. Though Pep Guardiola’s side managed to control the game in the second half, the Merseyside outfit didn’t concede a single shot on target against the highest scoring Premier League outfit.
Everton managed a draw at Anfield in the reverse fixture and haven’t beaten the Reds for quite a while. However, they will have the chance to change that as Klopp could ring in the changes as the side haven’t had much time to recuperate and could name a second-string side.
Team News
Eliaquim Mangala and Gylfi Sigurdsson won’t be featuring for Everton. James McCarthy’s broken tibia will keep him out for a while. Wayne Rooney will be all fired up for this clash and might feature in a slightly more advanced role this time around.
As for Liverpool, Klopp won’t have the services of Emre Can, Joe Gomez, Adam Lallana and Joel Matip. Mohamed Salah had a groin issue and came off against Manchester City in the second half, so he is unlikely to be risked. So Klopp has plenty to ponder.
Key Players
Everton will have to counter Liverpool’s press. Now, playing a low block is one way of doing it as Big Sam showed during the draw at Anfield, but one lapse in concentration and the tables could turn drastically. At the same time, try to play an expansive game and they’ll do to you want they did to Manchester City.
Idrissa Gueye will be a key player for the hosts as his tenacity in the midfield will come in handy against a team who like to pass it around.
For Liverpool, Gini Wijnaldum’s drive and passing from midfield will be key. Henderson is expected to start as he won’t be able to play against City owing to a suspension. However, it’ll be Wijnaldum who’ll drive forward from midfield and offer a goal threat.
Head to head record
Very one-sided. Everton haven’t won a game against the Reds in over seven years and will want to do something about that.
Everton wins: 9
Liverpool wins: 22
Draws: 20
Odds
Liverpool: 23/10, Everton: 10/11, Draw: 13/5