The 241st Merseyside derby between Everton and Liverpool ended 0-0 thanks to a superb performance from Jordan Pickford.
The 28-year-old made a number of superb saves in the Toffees goal, though his outstanding display was not reflective of the overall tone of the game. Everton were well worth their point and could easily have won the game themselves had Neal Maupay not missed a glaring opportunity.
Conor Coady also had a goal chalked off for offside, but it was Pickford’s tremendous showing that was the story of the game – his last-gasp save to tip Mohamed Salah’s low strike onto the post epitomising his brilliance in goal.
The opening half an hour saw Liverpool fail to get into any sort of rhythm and even though Harvey Elliott looked neat and tidy in flashes, it was Everton who enjoyed the game’s brighter moments.
Maupay dragged a shot wide of the post early on before Anthony Gordon forced Alisson into a smart low save – the two chances sandwiched either side of Darwin Nunez heading over a good Trent Alexander-Arnold cross.
The Toffees then struck the post as Tom Davies reacted first to a heavy touch by Maupay, but his cleverly crafted outside of the boot strike arched against Alisson’s woodwork and away from danger.
As the intensity and noise picked up in the Goodison Park crowd, Amadou Onana picked up the game’s first yellow card for a hefty knee-on-knee collision with Fabio Carvalho, and Liverpool looked to up their level to find their stride.
Conor Coady almost had a memorable derby moment, but it was struck off by VAR! ❌ pic.twitter.com/9RQW5u14a3
— 90min (@90min_Football) September 3, 2022
Nunez superbly pulled a long ball over the top out of the sky before his dipping effort from the angle was tipped superbly onto the crossbar by Pickford. Luis Diaz collected the rebound and having shifted inside onto his favoured right foot, the Colombian cannoned a driving effort against the inside of Pickford’s post and away.
Carvalho’s knock was enough to force him off at half-time, with Roberto Firmino his replacement, and the change did seem to lift Liverpool a little.
With the crowd noise dissipating, a hat-trick of good chances came Liverpool’s way within the space of a minute: Firmino first forced Pickford into a fabulous fingertip save after driving at goal first time, before the Brazilian was denied again from close range after leaping highest from Andy Robertson’s corner.
Fabinho then saw Pickford shovel his low drive away from goal before Everton fired up the other end on the counter attack. With a five on three advantage, the ball was squared to Maupay, but the troublesome finishing woes he had at Brighton reared their ugly head and Alisson deflected his shot wide of the post.
Everton then had a goal ruled out – Coady correctly adjudged to be offside from Gordon’s cross-shot – before Pickford underlined his status as player of the match with a terrific stop from Salah in injury-time.
The Egyptian had barely been in the game before firing a low first-time effort on goal, but it wasn’t good enough to beat the outstretched left hand of Pickford.
GK: Jordan Pickford – 9/10 – Great agility to tip Nunez’s effort onto the frame of the goal, with a number of smart parries away following. Utterly brilliant save from Salah in the last minute earned a deserved point.
RB: Nathan Patterson – 7/10 – Aggressive from the off, trying to unsettle Nunez and Diaz, and fared well in all departments. Could be a gem of a find from Rangers.
CB: Conor Coady – 7/10 – Authoritative in defence and looked to spring Everton forward with a number of raking diagonals. Had a goal chalked off.
CB: James Tarkowski – 6/10 – Didn’t stand as much as his defensive partner but solid enough throughout.
LB: Vitaliy Mykolenko – 7/10 – Salah was a peripheral figure to say the least, you’ve got to credit Mykolenko for that.
CM: Tom Davies – 6/10 – Unlucky to see his creative effort hit the post. Showed good energy and perhaps a little unlucky to be the first player subbed.
CM: Amadou Onana – 7/10 – Really energetic in midfield and looks destined to become a fan favourite.
CM: Alex Iwobi – 5/10 – A couple of neat flicks here or there but still not enough substance in Iwobi’s performance. Decision making must improve.
RW: Demarai Gray – 6/10 – Bright early on down the right flank but faded as the crowd intensity died down.
ST: Neal Maupay – 5/10 – Had a huge opportunity to win the game but fluffed his lines in front of goal.
LW: Anthony Gordon – 6/10 – Buzzed around and looked to stretch the game as much as possible. An irritant throughout for Liverpool’s defence.
SUB: Idrissa Gueye (61′ for Davies) – 6/10 – Picked up a couple of pockets and didn’t really look like he’d been away.
SUB: Dwight McNeil (82′ for Gordon) – N/A
Manager: Frank Lampard – 7/10 – Set his side up well and can be pleased with the intensity of all of his players. Didn’t get ahead of himself in the search for a first win of the season.
Subs not used: Begovic, Keane, Coleman, Vinagre, Allan, Mills, Rondon
GK: Alisson Becker – 8/10 – Stayed alert to make a crucial save from Maupay, having had very little else to do, and then did superbly to tip McNeil’s late effort over.
RB: Trent Alexander-Arnold – 5/10 – Always a bit frustrating when Alexander-Arnold doesn’t bring his A-game. He didn’t here and was protected fitness wise with an early sub.
CB: Joe Gomez – 6/10 – Not spectacular but not bad either. Functional, you could say.
CB: Virgil van Dijk – 6/10 – Won almost every aerial duel as you’d expect, though he still doesn’t look like the immoveable object that he once did.
LB: Kostas Tsimikas – 5/10 – Quite bright going forward but lost Gray a few times in the first half. Off before the hour.
DM: Fabinho – 6/10 – The glue in the heart of Liverpool’s midfield wasn’t ever really stretched.
CM: Harvey Elliott – 7/10 – So elegant and composed on the ball. Plays with a maturity beyond his tender years.
CM: Fabio Carvalho – 5/10 – Unable to really get involved in proceedings before taking a hefty smack on the knee from Onana. Replaced at the break.
RW: Mohamed Salah – 5/10 – You’d be forgiven for not knowing that Salah was playing until the dying embers of the game. A great snap shot but denied by Pickford’s outstretched glove.
ST: Darwin Nunez – 6/10 – Fashioned a couple of good openings for himself and was desperately unlucky when Pickford tipped his dipping shot onto the bar. Needs to work on his weak foot, that much is clear.
LW: Luis Diaz – 6/10 – Looked capable of firing into top gear without ever actually doing so.
SUB: Roberto Firmino (46′ for Elliott) – 6/10 – Played behind Nunez in a more advanced midfield role and could easily have added to his season’s tally.
SUB: James Milner (58′ for Alexander-Arnold) – 6/10 – Mr Versatile was delighted to see the linesman’s flag go up after he didn’t quite to get Gordon in time.
SUB: Andy Robertson (58′ for Tsimikas) – 6/10 – Put a couple of decent deliveries in but didn’t have a huge influence.
SUB: Joel Matip (80′ for Elliott) – N/A
SUB: Diogo Jota (80′ for Nunez) – N/A
Manager: Jurgen Klopp – 5/10 – Liverpool lacked invention for large parts and, truth be told, looked a little unbalanced. Injuries have a part to play in that but the inability to involve Salah more must lay with the manager.
Subs not used: Adrian, Phillips, Bajcetic, Arthur,