April 25, (THEWILL) – With goals from Andrew Robertson and Divock Origi in each half, Liverpool won the Merseyside derby 2-0, closing the margin on English Premier League leaders, Manchester City, to a single point once again.
Meanwhile, Everton will remain in the relegation zone as a consequence of Burnley’s victory over Wolves earlier in the day. Despite this, the Toffees put forth a valiant effort, with Frank Lampard’s team baffling their stronger opponents for an hour before Liverpool’s superiority prevailed.
A running fight between Anthony Gordon and Trent Alexander-Arnold dominated the early phases of the game. When he grappled with the Liverpool full-back, the Everton man got the best of his opponent a couple of times and might have been awarded a penalty.
Referee Stuart Attwell, on the other hand, seemed unfazed, and after a few minutes, he issued Gordon a yellow card for simulation.
With goalmouth action at a premium due to Everton staying deep and absorbing up pressure, this saga was probably the most entertaining thing about the first half. For the visitors, Diogo Jota and Mohamed Salah both wasted half-chances, while Abdoulaye Doucoure had the greatest chance before the interval, sending a shot past the far post.
On the stroke of halftime, when Liverpool refused to kick the ball out after Richarlison’s effort to play for time by asking to receive treatment for an injury, Abdoulaye Doucoure took matters into his own hands, chopping down Fabinho and sparking a near 22-man brawl.
The second half’s early patterns were identical to the first, with Liverpool’s guests allowing them to have the ball. Gordon continued to cause problems, sending a shot just wide just before the hour mark, while Naby Keita fired a shot from the edge of the box just wide of the post.
All of Everton’s excellent defensive effort was undone soon after the hour mark when Salah found Robertson with a precise cross at the back post, and the Scot made no mistake.
Salah was on the verge of transitioning from creator to scorer after that. From a corner, several of his colleagues assisted in keeping the ball alive, but when it eventually fell to the Egyptian, his volley flew over the bar.
Demarai Gray, who had been quiet up to that point, then came close to tying the game with a shot that went just wide of the post.
Apart from that, Everton struggled to cause any problems for their hosts, and Liverpool sealed the win five minutes from time thanks to Merseyside derby expert Origi. Luis Diaz acrobatically squared the ball to his Belgian colleague, who could not miss the goal from close range.
With this victory, Liverpool closed the gap on league leaders Manchester City to just one point. Their focus now shifts to the first leg of their Champions League semi-final against Villarreal on Wednesday.
Everton remain in the relegation zone, two points behind Burnley with a game in hand. The next time they play, they will face another difficult test when they host Chelsea.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
