Key events
45+2 min: Everton have been sat back a little on their lead. Are they tired? They probably should be. Konate has to stop Harrison and McNeil forging something.
45 min: Liverpool’s shooting has been awful. Alexander-Arnold moves centrally, Nunez’s flick is decent, and Salah swings and shanks wide. All three attackers now have missed big ones.
Six minutes added on to the half. Mostly VAR time.
44 min: Liverpool’s best chance? No, Diaz had less to aim at than Nunez and Pickford smuggles the ball away. Mykolenko is still out there, limping.
43 min: Oh no! Mykolenko’s taken a horrible fall, and is doubled in pain. He was twisting his ankle as he came down. Ashley Young looks to be coming on. Mykolenko is a brave boy, and he’s sat up, even stood up. His ankle went right over in a collision with Nunez. He’s going to try and run it off! Ukrainians, made of stern stuff, but we all knew that.
41 min: Tarkowski heads away from a Robertson cross. Neither of Liverpool’s full-backs have been able to make too much of an overlap.
39 min: Branthwaite, by the way. The new John Stones but with goals? He’s some player, classy. Everton continues to be a factory of talent, whatever the state of the rest of the club.
37 min: Get down to Goodison Park as the song rings out. Van Dijk is booked on his least favourite ground, for dissent. The cool man is losing his head. Diaz had been fouled but the Dutchman ran over to rail at the ref.
35 min: Branthwaite, such a prospect, steps in, and clears the ball as Szoboszlai tries to make an incursion. The ball comes back out to Nunez, and he blasts it at Pickford. Too easy. Diaz and Mac Allister had laid it on a plate. What a miss that is.
33 min: Is it time to start wondering what Arne Slot has to fix in this Liverpool team? And can Jurgen Klopp fix it? This has been a meek surrender when the title is very much on.
31 min: Virgil van Dijk, whose form has dipped this season, it feels fair to say, is returning to the scene of his ACL injury. He and Konate are being put under pressure by Everton bypassing the Liverpool midfield.
29 min: Oh, there was rebellion in the air if that was ruled out. Thankfully, it wasn’t. For Everton, that is. Liverpool may ask what happened to their defence.
VAR rules the goal is OK!
28 min: VAR are looking at it, as they do. A delay. Another delay. Where’s the offside this time? Calvert-Lewin was initially offside, but was Branthwaite, who hit the shot. It had crossed the line by the time DLC had got there and Branthwaite was onside.
Goal! Everton 1-0 Liverpool (Branthwaite, 27)
That’s the chaos Everton wanted to cause. McNeil’s ball has a few players swinging away, and now there’s Branthwaite’s shot, and the ball is creeping over the line and Calvert-Lewin slides in to make sure!
25 min: Everton full of derby determination, Liverpool way off it at the moment. Nothing happening from them. Calvert-Lewin is fouled by Konate, who has been given a buffeting all night from DLC.
23 min: Gueye bravely picks up the ball when the need to clear a corner was grave. Liverpool beginning to move further and further forward. Salah has been anonymous so far.
22 min: Liverpool corner, and Mykolenko heads clear. Again, Everton dominate the skies. Very impressive from Everton so far at both ends.
20 min: Dyche can be heard, urging on his team as Tarkowski wins another header in the Liverpool box. Nunez meanwhile misreads a ball aimed for him to chase.
19 min: Liverpool have been sluggish, despite dominating possession. Not much happening in the forward line. Calvert-Lewin meanwhile is all over Konate, who is struggling with a player who was a doubt for the game.
17 min: Another set-piece chance for Everton. Tarkowski loops a header back across and Calvert-Lewin makes Alisson make a save. Everton control the skies here. Van Dijk was nowhere near that.
16 min: The game seems to have settled after that early excitement. But Everton seem to fancy this more than Liverpool.
15 min: Everton take their time when the ball is with Pickford. That’s a feature of their play. It’s not a very entertaining one, either.
13 min: Everton chance! Gueye is fouled, and McNeil takes the free-kick. Ben Godfrey is at the back post and really could have done far better. That’s got to register as a big miss.
12 min: Jordan Pickford smashes the ball deep into the Liverpool half. No second ball retention. This is Dycheball.
10 min: Salah has a dig after a lovely chip from Alexander-Arnold. This is all happening. Surely this cannot end as a 0-0.
9 min: Liverpool got away with that one. Though by the letter of the law, it’s offside. So Everton’s boos of injustice are misguided. Still, adds to the gaiety of nations, right? Still, Alisson: lucky boy.
Penalty ruled out!
8 min: Oh, here’s VAR. Was Calvert-Lewin offside when Harrison played the ball? Yes, says VAR David Coote. It takes a long time to come. Alisson’s yellow card is rescinded, too.
Penalty to Everton!
5 min: Calvert-Lewin is baulked by Alisson. Harrison’s ball, and Alisson has knocked him over. Is he sent off?
4 min: Nunez escapes, and plays in Diaz. Mykolenko has to clear his lines.
3 min: Branthwaite’s ball to Harrison is a beauty, he cuts in, and the cross comes in. McNeil directs it back across goal but Doucoure’s finish is weak.
2 min: Mac Allister drops deep and will be the playmaker. Plenty of space for him there. The ball ends up with Pickford, who takes his time and then launches it to the skies.
And away we go at Goodison!
1 min: Sean Dyche and Jurgen Klopp shared the manliest of hugs as the game got underway. Big roars as McNeil and Alexander-Arnold roar into the first tackle.
The teams are out at Goodison Park. As it stands, and barring relegation next season, is this the penultimate Goodison derby? That all depends on the building work by the dockside, right? Personally, have always loved the old place. Football as it was.
This is the song you will hear wherever Everton fans are. It sounds a bit like Joe Fagin’s Auf Wiedersehen, Pet material and maybe the theme from Murphy’s Mob.
They especially love doing the “wooooo” bit.
David Bowen gets in touch: “Of all the comments made of Chelsea surely the most damning has just been offered by Jurgen Klopp: ‘I watched the first five minutes and thought okay that’s enough’.”
Some brief Sean Dyche, skipping that question of whether Ashley Young was dropped after that City Ground farrago: “We’re trying to bring a freshness and keep everybody as fit as they can. We’ve got another big game coming up at the weekend but this is obviously our focus right now.”
Cody Gakpo is missing, by the way, as his wife is expecting their child.
Some more words on Arne Slot, from Sander Westerveled, former Liverpool goalkeeper on a friend and former teammate. “People ask me if I knew back then he would be a coach. You could see he was one of those. He was already a perfectionist. Only football, football, football and he was always talking about tactics and everything. I think it’s a perfect fit for Liverpool and hopefully he will sign.”
Gareth Bradley gets in touch: “I thought I might bring up the point of players complaining about being tired at this stage of the season and point you in the direction of Buckie Thistle winning their 12th title over Brechin City after dramatic final day. Six wins in thirteen days put paid to my team, Brechin City, winning the Highland League. Of course the Buckie Thistle players will have full time work and/or studying to contend with as well.”
How about this lot last season?
Wayne Rooney is in the Sky studio tonight: ““I think Everton need another win to make sure they are safe this season. Any time you are playing against Liverpool, it’s a huge game. I’m expecting Everton to come out with a lot of energy.
“I think tonight Everton have to play as stronger a team as they can, which Sean Dyche has done. They need to try and get points in the bag quickly. If you beat Liverpool, it can be a huge lift for the club. It hasn’t been an easy fixture over the years but hopefully tonight they will be a bit happier.”
Gary J Byrne: “With Liverpool’s penalty taker Mo Salah back in the starting line-up, I’m naturally disappointed Ashley Young has been left out of the Everton team.”
For the record, here’s the officials: Referee: Andy Madley. Assistants: Harry Lennard, Nick Hopton. Fourth official: Simon Hooper. VAR: David Coote. Assistant VAR: Lee Betts.
Joe Pearson gets in touch: “Not surprised Young is on the bench, since he got sent off in the reverse fixture in October. To riff on your Football Daily Jethro Tull reference, maybe Dyche thinks he’s too old to rock and roll, too Young to die.”
Jurgen Klopp’s final Merseyside derby, of course, his 19th.
Record won 11, drawn six, lost one.
For Everton: Ashley Young, after his lucky escapes at Forest, is replaced at right-back by Ben Godfrey and James Garner comes in for Andre Gomes in midfield. Dominic Calvert-Lewin is fit to start.
For Liverpool: Six changes from Fulham. Mohamed Salah, Alexis Mac Allister and Darwin Nunez, Dominik Szoboszlai, Curtis Jones and Ibrahima Konate all come in.
Out: Cody Gakpo, Ryan Gravenberch, Wataru Endo, Harvey Elliott and Jarrell Quansah, with Diogo Jota unavailable.
The teams
Everton: Pickford, Godfrey, Tarkowski, Branthwaite, Mykolenko, Harrison, Gueye, Garner, McNeil, Doucoure, Calvert-Lewin. Subs: Keane, Onana, Danjuma, Virginia, Young, Andre Gomes, Chermiti, Warrington, Hunt.
Liverpool: Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Konate, van Dijk, Robertson, Jones, Szoboszlai, Mac Allister, Salah, Nunez, Diaz. Subs: Gomez, Endo, Elliott, Tsimikas, Gravenberch, Clark, Kelleher, Danns, Quansah.
Referee: Andrew Madley (West Yorkshire)
For those who count these things, and this is the only derby that seems to count up, this is the the 244th Merseyside derby.
Liverpool are chasing their 100th win, Everton their 68th. The 0-0 would be a 78th draw.
All-time top-scorer: Ian Rush, 25, next best Dixie Dean on 19
Currently playing top scorer: Mohamed Salah on 7.
Here’s the talk about a successor to Jurgen Klopp.
Early team news:
For Everton: Dominic Calvert-Lewin is an injury doubt, problematic when Beto will miss the next two games in line with head injury protocols.
For Liverpool: Diogo Jota’s dead-eye finishing will be missed after his goal against Fulham though aside from Conor Bradley’s absence, Klopp has a full deck available, beyond the likes of Thiago and and Stefan Bajcetic.
Liverpool cannot go top of the table, barring a 13-0 win.
Everton can pull away from the bottom three.
Preamble
Good evening. How many headlines can fit the word “Slot” in? Liverpool are moving fast, it seems, with appointing a new manager, but what about the outgoing bloke? There’s still a title race to be fought for. And Jurgen Klopp is no quitter. The weekend’s defeat of Fulham recharged hopes and batteries. Talking of which, so did Everton’s defeat of Nottingham Forest, achieved by a long-range goal from an Idrissa Gueye long-ranger and a Dwight McNeil strike. And/Or the dread hand of Stuart Attwell according to certain conspiracy theorists in the City Ground inner sanctum. Everton play Luton next week, the game that probably decides their fate. Before that the Merseyside derby, the one at Goodison that usually finishes 0-0. It has, four of the last six years. We all know the drill: Liverpool attacking, Everton defending doggedly and some bad tackles flying in, and being waved away by refs when normally the cards would be being waved. That’s bad tackles by both teams, by the way.
Kick-off is 8pm, Merseyside time. Join me.
Olivia Martin is a dedicated sports journalist based in the UK. With a passion for various athletic disciplines, she covers everything from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis.
