Liverpool Embarrass Their Crosstown Rivals

Regardless of position in the table, the Merseyside Derby is always something to look forward to.  Despite the relative closeness in the standings, Liverpool came in as the more in form team.  They only had one loss in their last 14 fixtures across all competitions, but those stats usually mean little in rivalry games.

The match opened up with a bit of trepedation on both sides.  Neither seemed to want to make an early mistake.  Then things began to loosen up a bit after the fifth minute.

Adam Lallana missed a golden opportunity to go up 1-0 in the sixth minute.  Lallana was basically alone in the box and tried to slip it through the wickets of Joel Robles, but the goalkeeper got down to stop the ball.

Then Morales had a chance about 13 minutes later for Everton.  He had slipped in behind much of the defense and cut it back into a good area, but did nothing but shoot it off the outside of his foot and not even trouble Simon Mignolet.

The teams kept trading what could be considered chances, but with little really in any of them.  Origi flashed a pass across in 22nd minute that was easily dealt with.  Lukaku outmuscled Sakho into the box seconds later only to be stopped by a brilliant slide tackle.

Lucas had a rip at goal that Robles dove for but easily saw and then Lallana flicked a header just wide in the 24th minute.  Coutinho almost snuck one in from a free kick in the 27th minute.

Then Roberto Firmino had a real chance in the 30th minute.  It seemed he had to be offside, but still got the shot off.  It took a touch off the defender, which put it off just enough to deflect off Robles' leg instead of going through the legs.

Despite the game seeming like it would go scoreless into the half, Liverpool broke the deadlock in the 43rd minute.  James Milner lobbed a monster cross from the right and Divock Origi just wanted it more.  He outlept two defenders and just neatly tucked it into the side of the goal with the header for the 1-0 lead.

Then Milner struck again with another assist in stoppage time.  With the clock just striking 47, Milner took a return pass in the box and bent one to the top of the six yard area.  Everton's defense looked lost and were ball watching, leaving Sakho wide open.  He headed it with power, but all it needed was any kind of touch and it would have gone in.  2-0 Reds was the halftime score.

The wheels really came off for the team in blue in the second half.  The fixture that had the most sending offs in league history added another name to that list.

Ramino Funes Mori was given a red card in the 50th minute.  There was a question of whether he was given a yellow for the challenge and a yellow for kicking the ball away or giving a straight red, but either way the Reds were up by a man though Origi was taken off the field as well with an injury due to the stamp.

Daniel Sturridge came on as the replacement as the Origi injury looked more and more serious with each replay.  However, the replacement made the opposition pay quite quickly.  Lucas fed a sweet ball through the hole into the box and Sturridge comfortably tucked it into the back of the net with a neat finish for his 50th career Liverpool goal.

Following the goal, you almost felt bad for Everton.  They had shot themselves in the foot with the foolish red card, but it became almost a training exercise for Liverpool.  They spent what seemed like the final 20 minutes in the attacking penalty area just flashing things left and right of the target.

Liverpool, however, were not concerned with the woes of their crosstown rival though and rightly so.  In the 76th minute, Joe Allen found Coutinho at the top of the 18.  The Brazilian feinted a one-time shot and then used the one touch to create space before placing one perfectly in the bottom right corner and a four goal lead.

The whistle mercifully blew in the 98th minute wth Liverpool the victors by a final of 4-0.  As Liverpool fans, it was a night to relish.  Even the softest of us still revel in defeating your rivals and this was a night to enjoy.  The football itself wasn't a great spectacle as it became the stuff of training ground walk throughs, but there's nothing wrong with a win.  There's nothing wrong with a win over your rival and there's definitely nothing wrong with a win over your rival coming with ease.

Liverpool moved up to seventh in the league.  They trail West Ham by two with a game in hand.  They are still within reach of catching Manchester United for fifth as well, but for now it's not even worth discussing that.  Best to keep focused on each match and feel good about the results when they come.

Random Thoughts

- Despite the big win, the injury to Origi comes at a bad time.  With Liverpool needing to put a lot of focus on Europa League and not wanting to put too much stress on Daniel Sturridge, losing a productive striker at this point is a big loss if he's out for long.

- Given the way the game played out, I'm glad he was not in the lineup.  Still, it would have been neat to see Tim Howard in the Everton goal for his final Merseyside Derby.

- Though many of us get on them, it would have been nice to see either Joe Allen or Lucas actually get a goal to reward them for their recent efforts.  I'll throw Lallana into that mix as well, though he messes up his own chances when he gets them sometimes.

- Sakho is just such an odd character.  He's really growing into a solid defender and even scoring a goal here and there.  But he just looks so awkward in his movements.  He's always somewhat hunched and squatted in his placement to make kicks and always seems as though he might flub it, but he's been solid regardless.

- Jurgen Klopp can say that the league is always most important, but at this point it would be a mistake to not put more emphasis on Europa.  It would be almost impossible to get into fifth, let alone fourth so the european league remains Liverpool's best chance at Champions League football next season and that helps draw in better players.

Walk On