Liverpool are set to take on Everton in the first Merseyside derby of the season on Saturday.
The past few years have seen the two Merseyside clubs battle it out, with the Toffees managing to make a good name for themselves despite only winning one out of the last five derbies.
Of course, Arne Slot’s men have overshadowed their arch-rivals for some time now, but with the form that the Toffees have been in this season, Everton could be one of Liverpool’s biggest tests of the season.
However, since they only played against Atletico Madrid on Wednesday evening, Liverpool’s first-team squad could be rather fatigued ahead of the clash.
Jamie Carragher says Liverpool could be ‘vulnerable’ when they face Everton on Saturday
One thing that Liverpool have had over Everton is the number of trophies they’ve won over the last few years.
Many expected the Reds’ progress to halt once Jurgen Klopp announced that he was leaving, but in reality, Slot has taken the Anfield outfit to another level.
Indeed, the Dutchman may have spent a lot of money on new players this summer, but last term, the only player that was brought in was Federico Chiesa.
Not only does this show how good a manager Slot is, but it also shows how good Liverpool’s team is as a whole.
However, that hasn’t stopped Jamie Carragher from worrying that Liverpool could be “vulnerable” against Everton on Saturday.
“The balance of power is in Liverpool’s favour now, but many Everton supporters will say they would rather take a risk by ‘having a go’ at Anfield with attacking weapons like Jack Grealish and Illian Ndiaye, rather than sitting back, trying to win on the counter-attack and suffering a familiar fate,” he wrote for the Daily Telegraph.
“Liverpool had a tiring European match in midweek and a 12.30pm Saturday kick-off can make them more vulnerable.
“Too many recent Anfield derbies have followed the same pattern, with Everton trying to defend for 90 minutes in the hope of earning a draw, or snatching victory from a set-piece. A couple of draws and one win in lockdown aside, it has failed for the past 26 years.
“Moyes might be encouraged by such growing positivity from his fan base that a different plan might work. He will also be wary of it.”
Liverpool must prove how much better they are than Everton on Saturday
Liverpool may have won all four of their Premier League games so far, but playing Everton is a different kettle of fish entirely.
Of course, the likes of Newcastle and Arsenal have been difficult challenges for the Reds this term, but due to the amount of build-up the Merseyside derby gets, a lot is riding on Saturday’s game.
At the moment, it’s unclear how Slot will line his men up, but with the hot-headedness of Milos Kerkez and the lack of fitness that Alexis Mac Allister has, it feels like it would be unwise to start either of them.
Indeed, Andy Robertson and Dominik Szoboszlai would be able to fill in for the aforementioned duo and, on paper, it may feel like the Scotsman is a downgrade on Kerkez, but in reality, it would be better for the Hungarian to sit this one out.
And, the fact that Vitalii Mykolenko is likely to be sidelined due to injury means that Mohamed Salah could end up having a free run towards whoever is filling in for the Ukrainian, making him a deadly asset for Liverpool.
If the Reds don’t win on Saturday, it’ll be a massive catastrophe, especially with the form they’ve shown this season.
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