Liverpool V Everton

Saturday, 6^th February – 12:45 GMT

The Merseyside Derby – LIVE on Sky Sports 1

Liverpool

League Position: 5th

Recent Form: WDWDW

Liverpool, a side which should have some new found belief after going six games unbeaten in the league, put their six match unbeaten run well and truly to the test as they welcome their bitter and local rivals; Everton, to Anfield for this hotly anticipated Merseyside derby. The first encounter of the season between these two bitter foes saw the red side of Liverpool take all the spoils in a 2-0 victory at Goodison Park back in November. However, The Toffee’s are desperate to avenge that defeat as they felt aggrieved to have lost that fixture and will be doing their utmost to avoid being on the wrong end of a league double against the Reds’.

It’s been a patchy season to say the least for Liverpool and even now, after stringing a six match unbeaten streak together, they still aren’t performing to the level we all know they can play at – which is high! Their performance on Saturday wasn’t pleasing on the eye nor was it entirely convincing, with Bolton creating several decent openings which scared the living daylights out of home supporters. However, the big plus point was that Liverpool won the game without playing well and it was also pleasing to see Steven Gerrard close to his best after a handful of poor displays this season. The Liverpool skipper wanted the ball throughout, which hasn’t always been the case at times this season, and there was glimpses of the old Gerrard; the one that shot on sight and had a keen vision for through passes and pinpoint long balls. The Kop will demand a lot from their talismanic captain this Saturday as they hope he will take this game by the scruff of it’s neck and drive Liverpool towards a much needed victory.

A win on Saturday, in what is the weekends early kick-off, would be a huge scalp for Liverpool as it would lift the spirits of the players as they are desperate for a morale boosting win as they begin their assault on the top four. Then again, Liverpool are in good form at Anfield, having won their last three games at home in the league. However, only one of those three victories seen Liverpool put in a decent shift and that was against Tottenham, a game which was being touted as one of their biggest games of the season. That night, like many others when Rafael Benitez and his players are under scrutiny, Liverpool were sensational from start to finish; from their work rate to chances to created, Liverpool were top notch. It was arguably their best displays of the season and it brought back memories of their performance against their arch enemy, Manchester United, when they beat United 2-0 at Anfield earlier in the campaign. They were under the cosh that day before kick-off and rose to the challenge, completely outplaying United for most parts of the game, but when the pressure isn’t on them as much, much like this game in all fairness because they are now unbeaten in six, Liverpool do have this tendency to come unstuck and did so at home to Arsenal back in December, losing 2-1 at Anfield, right after things were looking up after previously going four games unbeaten in the league

Liverpool are a huge club, not only in England but around the globe, and it’s sometimes their reputation alone that has them priced up as firm favourites in some matches. Saturday’s match up with Everton is no exception, and while they should win, we can’t see an awful lot of value in backing a side which generally only comes good when their backs are firmly up against the wall. Some will say their season is still at a low, which it is in some respects, but the players won’t be feeling the pressure as much after a decent run of results and we can’t help but have reservations over their motivation ahead of this fixture; which is an absurd comment to make considering it’s a local derby but that’s the state Liverpool are in at the moment in that you just don’t know which Liverpool will turn up – The classy outfit which could beat absolutely anyone on their day or the side that looks lost and rarely breaks a sweat as they underachieve yet again.

Everton

League Position: 9th

Recent Form: WDWWW

Everton won’t care about their form heading into this fixture nor their position in the table but will instead concentrate solely on the task at hand and securing a victory at a venue they haven’t won at since 1999 when Kevin Campbell scored the only goal of the game in a 1-0 win for the visitors. Since, however, The Toffee’s haven’t been sweet enough and haven’t won at Anfield since the turn of the Millennium. A run they will be eager to better on Saturday.

Everton, much like their neighbours, are having an under-par season thus far but do appear a team firmly on the up after putting together a nine match run without losing in the Premiership. It’s a staggering run when you consider that this streak of theirs was built upon three successive defeats in the league after a poor month of November. However, this impressive streak of theirs is a credit to the staff and players as Everton have risen to the challenge and ridden the immense pressure put on them by the press and by their expectant fans and just like their match day opponents, Everton are also gunning for a European finish and are also having to play catch up.

Everton head into this eagerly awaited fixture with better form than their counterparts, winning their previous three league encounters. All were impressive, all were to NIL, with Tim Howard in the Everton goal having not conceded in the league for 270 minutes after clinical victories over Man City (2-0), Sunderland (2-0) & Wigan Athletic (0-1). The last one, an away win at Wigan, came at just the right time as questions would have been asked of Everton going into this fixture after previously not managing an away win in the Premiership in five outings. It was, however, still just their third away win of the season and it was against a beleaguered Wigan side, but it will only be a positive from an Everton perspective as it keeps up this momentum and their improving confidence levels.  

Even a poor Liverpool would require a big display from Everton if they were to win on Saturday, but the Toffee’s have proven in their recent fixtures that they can up their game and they can be a match for any side. In this inspiring eight match unbeaten run of theirs, three more matches unbeaten than Liverpool, Everton have had to pull some huge team displays out of the hat, earning incredible draws at both The Emirates; drawing 2-2 with Arsenal, and at Stamford Bridge; drawing 3-3 with Chelsea. Both games saw Everton at their very best, counter-attacking at pace and in numbers, and the fact they’ve now scored five goals in their last two away fixtures with ‘Big Four’ opposition is a massive positive heading into their fourth and final away clash of the season against one of last seasons top four sides.

Head-to-Head (Last 10):

Liverpool W: 7 Everton W: 1 Draws: 2

•  Everton have won just one of the last ten meetings with Liverpool; A 3-0 victory at Goodison Park back in 2006. 

•  Everton have earned a draw in two of their last three visits to Anfield

•  There hasn’t been an Overs (2.5) game at Anfield between the two in their last three encounters, with the last coming back in 2006 when Liverpool won 3-1. 

•  Liverpool are unbeaten in six league meetings with Everton; three at Anfield and three at Goodison Park. 

•  The previous six meetings at Anfield have seen Everton come away with more booking points, with Liverpool generally quite clean in that aspect. 

• Everton will seek inspiration from their FA Cup win at Anfield last season when they won 2-1 after extra-time via a Dan Gosling strike.

Match Verdict: Draw - 3.60 Bet365

We would love to tip up Liverpool but we have too many unanswered questions surrounding them and so the draw is our selection as we cowardly sell out for a stalemate. To be honest, though, Everton are enjoying a good spell of form and look a tough proposition for Liverpool on paper. They’ve gone three more games than Liverpool without losing and have won their last three league encounters, all without conceding a goal. You would feel the Everton squad will be the more confident of the two but you can never back against Liverpool on their own turf and so a draw, however gutless it may seem, could turn out to be the smart bet here. Also, a wee punt on Everton receiving more booking points than Liverpool could prove beneficial.

Match Odds:

Liverpool – 1.90 BlueSquare

Draw – 3.60 Bet365

Everton – 5.00 Boylesports

SoccerBetting Value Pick: Everton (More bookings or booking points)