Stalemate at the Merseyside derby gives Man City the title advantage

Editorial Team 6 years ago

Everton FC - flag with logo

The blue side of Merseyside chanted in delight as Everton displayed resilience to hold Liverpool to a 0-0 draw. Jurgen Klopp’s men went into the game knowing they had to win to claim the top spot back from Manchester City, who beat Bournemouth 1-0 yesterday.

Mohammad Salah had a good chance to put Liverpool ahead in the first half after Fabinho set him up one on one with the England number one. Jordan Pickford made a good save to deny Liverpool the lead. The goal keeper whose fault led to the deciding goal scored by Origi in the reverse fixture at Anfield made up for the error by putting in a stellar display.

Everton were on top in the second half with constant pressing and quick breaks after winning the ball. Marco Silva made three attacking changes in the second half sensing the game is their’s to win. After Richarlison, Cenk Tosun and André Gomes were on the pitch, Everton were the more likely side to score.

Joel Matip made an attacking run forward and his pass with the deflection of Kurt Zouma’s foot came kindly to Mohammad Salah, who took a horrid first touch gave enough time and space for Michael Kaene to make a spectacular tackle and sniff out the danger.

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One could sense the panic and anxiety displayed by Liverpool players who had Van Dijk to thank for being exceptional in the second half. Fabinho was caught off in multiple occasions and the centre-back was present to rescue his team mate in almost every situation.

Richarlison constantly got the better of Robertson after coming on. His combination with the Everton captain Séamus Coleman gave Everton plenty of joy down the right flank. Bernard was inches away from reaching a whipped cross from Richarlison right in front of Alisson Becker’s goal who was untested for most of the game. He made a decent save of Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s header and stopped a tame effort from Tosun.

Liverpool drew 3 of their last 5 league games while City won all their league games in the same period. Notably, Liverpool had the chance to go ten points clear at the top when they faced Manchester City in early January but now find themselves a point behind the Champions with only 9 games left. The title is now Pep Guardiola’s champions to lose.

Editorial Team

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LosMejor's Editorial Team includes a team of experts who cover the UEFA Champions League, Premier League, FA Cup and the Carabao Cup. The Editorial team is headed by Deepak Selvan.