One of the traditionally hottest games in the Premier League calendar ended scoreless after a disciplined performance had both teams struggle for chances. It was the 224th Merseyside derby but that was all there was to shout about as the encounter at Goodison Park failed to catch fire. Steven Gerrard lead Liverpool to what will probably be his last game against Everton, but the Reds failed to make his goodbye to derbies a victorious one. Jordon Ibe came closest to the breakthrough but his thunderbolt could only leave a mark on the post rather than the scoresheet.
Both teams came into the game in a good mood on the back of victories. Liverpool saw off West Ham at home in a game that gave Daniel Sturridge his first appearance (and goal) in five months. This is a period where the Reds have turned the corner after their sluggish start to the season and are now challenging for a top 4 finish, starting the day only 4 points behind 4th placed Southampton. Everton edged past Crystal Palace to win only their second match in the last eleven. They are having a worse season than their city rivals, sitting in the bottom half of the table in 12th position with a charge for European Cup positions looking unlikely.
Defence has been the biggest reason to worry for both sides this season, but there were signs of improvement with Liverpool keeping a clean sheet in four consecutive games and not losing in eight games since their loss at Old Trafford. Everton have benefited from John Stones returning from injury and being reunited with Phil Jagielka at the heart of the Toffees’ defence, with two clean sheets in three games since the young defenders return to the starting line up.
The atmosphere was electric at Goodison Park from the first minute, which reflected in the high pace of the game with attack after attack being halted by attentive defenders and the lack of quality delivery in the final thirds of the pitch. Mamadou Sakho got himself into trouble aft
er he dwelled on the ball for far too long dangerously close to his box; the Frenchman lost the ball after he incredibly attempted to dribble past the pressing Naismith and Mirallas and was fortunate the latter was offside after Naismith robbed the defender. On the other side of the pitch, Sterling got on the end of a delightful Coutinho ball into the Everton box and beat Joel to it with the goalkeeper caught in no man’s land. The striker opted to shoot from a tight angle when a pass to the edge of the box would have been a much better option, as his shot just hit the side netting.
The Everton keeper was called into action for the first time in the 10th minute after Barry conceded a foul in a very dangerous position well within Steven Gerrard’s range. The Liverpool skipper stepped up and Joel just got a hand to his shot and pushed it over the bar quite comfortably in the end. The visitors were forced into an early substitution after a quarter of an hour when Lucas went straight into the dressing room with Joe Allen replacing him. Just a minute later Raheem Sterling had a shot from the edge of the box blocked by Stones but the deflection fell kindly in front of Ibe, who would have had a simple tap in if Joel hadn’t done well to get their first and turn it for a corner.
The hosts had their first big chance when Coleman found some space on the right wing and sent a cross that went over Liverpool’s back three to Naismith, who was surprised by the chance and instead of getting a strong header or controlling the ball, it bounced off his head and the danger was gone. In the 27th minute, Jordon Ibe took control of the ball on the right side on the halfway line. He was allowed to charge forward with all Everton players backing off until he got a sight at goal. He then unleashed a ferocious shot to the far top corner that bombarded off the post, much to the relief of the home fans. Just 10 minutes later, Coutinho had his effort comfortably claimed by Joel and that was it for the first half, with Liverpool on the front foot.
Just 5 minutes after the restart, Mirallas’ free kick from the left went just inches wide of Mignolet’s near post, with the Belgian keeper not having much to do throughout the game. Sterling then had two good chances within a space of a minute to get the breakthrough. First he was found on the break by Coutinho, his first touch took the youngster behind Stones but into a tighter angle and his shot was held by the Everton keeper with ease. Coutinho found Sterling for the second chance as well, this time on the move behind Coleman and Stones but he was forced into an even tighter angle and tried to catch out Joel at the near post but the keeper shut his legs in time. Gerard almost got his dream ‘goodbye’ to Merseyside derbies from the resulting cleared corner, but his acrobatic overhead volley was headed from under the bar by Naismith.
Aaron Lennon was then handed his debut but failed to make much of an impact. In the 70th minute another substitute Sturridge lashed a shot from six yards after the ball was dangerously bouncing around in the Everton area, but the effort was well blocked by Jagielka. Things heated up between Henderson and Naismith who initiated some pushing and shoving, eventually getting more players dragged in. Anthony Taylor was content to just book the two initial offenders. With 5 minutes to go, Gerrard flicked Sturridge’s pass for Lambert, but the striker’s effort from 12 yards was easy enough for Joel.
Roberto Martinez introduced Ross Barkley to provide some much needed creativity for the hosts in the final third and his move almost paid off immediately. The talented midfielder produced an exquisite ball across the width of the pitch into the Liverpool box right into Coleman’s path. The full back took a touch and fired into the far top corner for Everton’s first shot on goal but Mignolet made a great save to keep the score level, having had nothing to do all evening. Gerrard then had a last chance to leave his mark on the game 2 minutes from end after Sturridge found him on the edge of the box, but his first time left footed shot curled wide of the post. And so the 224th Merseyside derby ended 0-0 for the 33rd time in history with the biggest positive for both teams being a clean sheet.
Brendan Rodgers has done brilliantly well to address Liverpool’s problems at the back and managed to turn around their season. He changed the shape of his side to a 3-4-2-1 using the midfielder Emre Can as a right centre-back and the German has impressed in this position so far, with Skrtel marshalling the trio effectively. The deployment of Gerrard and Lucas as the two holding midfielders has also paid off, with Lucas starting ever since the loss at Old Trafford and the Reds have not lost in the league since. His injury will be a worry to Rodgers and hopefully it won’t be anything serious. Jordon Ibe impressed in just his second Premier League start after a successful loan spell at Derby. Coutinho continued his fine run of form, creating chances for the front man Sterling who failed to capitalise.
With John Stones and Phil Jagielka reunited in central defence, Everton will be hoping to get their season rolling although a visit to Stamford Bridge on Wednesday might not be the easiest of fixtures. However, the reunion of the two centre backs is certainly a positive for Martinez with the Toffees conceding only once in their last four games and the pair combined today for another fine performance keeping the likes of Sterling, Coutinho and Sturridge at bay throughout the game. They have combined for a total of 10 clearances, 8 of which came from the dangerous area in the penalty box. They have also added a combined 6 blocks with Jagielka’s six yard one on Sterling being the highlight of them all. They also have a very impressive 94% pass accuracy, although most of their passing was short and safe, they are both comfortable on the ball and that makes everyone ahead of them feel more secure.
