Everton beat Liverpool 2-0 in Merseyside derby
Liverpool’s off-field problems may have been solved with John W Henry securing the ownership of the club but on the football pitch, their problems just got worse as they lost 2-0 to Everton in the Merseyside derby.
Liverpool started the match while being in the 18th position in the league table and for a club of their stature being in the relegation zone is just a shame.
But, they did nothing to save themselves from the shame as an out of sorts Liverpool side succumbed to 4th defeat in the season. In the 8 matches that Liverpool have so far played this season, they have only won one and drawn 3.
It was the first game for the new owners and with them in attendance at the Goodisson Park, Liverpool needed to come up with a good performance but they failed to do so on the night.
Roy Hodgson started the match with a makeshift defence as Glen Johnson was out injured and his place was taken by Jamie Carragher while Skrtel and Krygiakos played in the central defence and Konchesky at left back.
In the 5-man midfield were Raul Meireles, Lucas, Cole, Gerrard and Maxi Rodriguez while Torres played as a lone striker.
For Everton, Phil Jagielka made a quick recovery from his hamstring injury that he had suffered while being on international duty and took his place at the heart of the defence alongside Sylvain Distin. Phil Neville played as a right back.
In the five-man midfield, Seamus Coleman, Arteta, Cahil, Heitinga and Osman shone while Yakubu masterfully led the attack alone.
Everton came out of the blocks with all guns blazing as they pressed Liverpool at every turn and got forward at each opportunity with Seamus Coleman proving to be a headache for Liverpool's defence on the right wing.
This was always going to be a feisty encounter as the Merseyside derbies in the past have 19 red cards (more than any other clash in the Premier League) with 10 reds coming in the last 11 fixtures.
And a feisty encounter it was with Liverpool resorting to physical challenges early on but Everton maintained their calm and remained composed to see off a dismal Liverpool.
The first goal came right before the break when another marauding run by Coleman found Cahil free in the box and the Australian made no mistake from close range.
Liverpool came out after the breather with a renewed vigor but it counted for nothing as Everton dominated the second half as well.
The second goal for Everton came in the 49th minute when a Leighton Baines cross fell invitingly at the feet of Mikel Arteta and the Spaniard creamed a thunderous shot past a hapless Reina.
Liverpool's manager, Roy Hodgson tried to chop and change things in the second half as he sent on David, Ngog, Milan Jovanovic and Ryan Babel in place of a disappointing Joe Cole, Lucas Leiva and Raul Meireles but to no avail as none of the substitutes succeeded
in inspiring a comeback for their side.
On the other hand, Yakubu was a threat on his own as he combined with Coleman, Cahil and Arteta on various occasion in the second half but failed to guide the ball past Pepe Reina.
Torres looked out of sorts and had little to do in the match although, he forced a smart save from Howard towards the end of the match when he fired straight at the American, a shot that an in-form Torres would have put into the back of the net 9 out of
10 times.
All in all, it was not Liverpool’s night and they plundered deep into relegation zone even behind Wolves in 19th place after just 8 games.
This loss has put immense pressure on Hodgson as his position as the manager of LFC is now under severe threat and with the new owners in place, Hodgson cannot be seen as the reds’ manager if results continue to be like this.
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