Everton and Liverpool play out 1-1 draw at Goodison Park
Another Merseyside Derby and another draw as the game at Goodison Park ended all square thanks to goals from Danny Ings and Romelu Lukaku.
All the pressure was on Brendan Rodgers going into the game, with several reports claiming he could lose his job at Anfield if they fell to another defeat.
However, his side did enough to ensure they wouldn’t be leaving empty-handed as they held the Toffees to a 1-1 draw.
The Merseyside Derby is usually a feisty affair and on a couple of occasions things did get a bit heated, once with Emre Can and Ross Barkley, and once in stoppage time when Mamadou Sakho and Lukaku squared up to each other.
Match Summary
It was an impressive start with Liverpool, who had most of the ball in the opening stages, but unfortunately for Rodgers, his side failed to create any real goalscoring chances.
It was in fact the hosts who nearly took the lead, but a Steven Naismith header was saved superbly by Simon Mignolet. The Belgium reacting quickly to deny Naismith at point-blank range.
Mignolet then made a second stunning save to deny James McCarthy and his saves were rewarded at the other end when Ings headed home a corner after he was left unmarked in the six-yard box.
However, the England international saw his goal cancelled out on the stroke of half-time when Lukaku made Liverpool pay for shocking defending, as he thumped the ball past Mignolet to level things up.
Sadly the second-half wasn’t as exciting and no-one really created a chance to snatch all three points.
The draw puts Everton 6th in the table, while Liverpool stay 10th.
Match Reaction
Liverpool striker Danny Ings: “I thought it was exciting for fans and I’m grateful to get my goal in the derby. Today was a special game.
“We created a lot of chances, especially in the first half. The defence was fantastic and in the second half it was more of an end-to-end game.
“All the outside noise, we ignore it and the dressing room stick together.
“I struggled through the game. I just got my ankle caught in Phil Jagielka’s legs when he made an excellent tackle. It will be assessed but should be fine.”
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers speaking to Sky Sports: “I thought that we were the better team in first half, a real threat and we deservedly took lead. I’m disappointed with the goal as it was a mistake.
“In the second half, we knew we would come under pressure and the game became counter-attacking for us. I’m proud of the players.
“The motivation of the players was very high to come here. We know we are improving with each game. We can still be better with our passing. In the second half, we didn’t keep the ball well enough when we won it back.
“It is a very good point. It is a difficult place to come. We looked like we were getting better in our attack and defensively we were more cohesive.
“There’s no pressure for me. My worry is for the team and you have seen a response of how they feel. This is a team which has lost four of the real catalysts and there is a constant rebuilding going on here.”
Everton goalscorer Romelu Lukaku: “We deserved to win today, we controlled the game. Mignolet made some good saves and we should have kept more composure in possession,.
“To concede just before half-time was difficult, but we were lucky to score, that was a boost for the second-half. We dominated the game but did not get the shots like we did in the first-half.”
On the scuffle with Mamadou Sakho: “It was a little shove, we are two competitors, it is what people like to see but we are ok now.”
Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt
