Jurgen Klopp and Sean Dyche assessed the Merseyside Derby and their respective teams after Liverpool ran out 2-0 winners to gain the bragging rights on Merseyside.
A flashpoint was Cody Gakpo netting his first Liverpool goal, but the Reds never looked like letting the game slip out of their grasps when Mohamed Salah notched up yet another derby goal. Gakpo’s first in a Liverpool shirt was well-merited after a fine display and this rounded off the scoring.
“Today we deserved it.”
Klopp’s side looked utterly dominant on Monday evening and ran out deserved winners.
The German manager was waxing lyrical about his sides display in the derby, as the Reds were able to hold off a physical unit in the Toffees engine room.
“Happy with the performance.” Klopp said. “It was necessary that we played tonight the game we wanted to play and not the game Everton wants to play. You cannot avoid that all the time but I think they didn’t have an extremely high number of set-pieces, so with all the aggressiveness you have to show you have to make sure you don’t overdo it because each set-piece is a massive threat and something they want to have, and I thought we did that really well.
Last week the first ball came in, deflection and goal. Yes, it was the biggest difference from other games but the performance of the full game was the best for a while. We will take wins when you don’t play well but much better to get three points when you deserve it and today we deserved it.“
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Gakpo put in a “good performance”
After notching his first goal for Jurgen Klopp’s side, his lease of energy and creativity handed the Dutchman a heap of praise, from the fans to players - who were seen visibly clapping the forward - and his manager, who gave a satisfactory reaction when asked about his performance.
“A good performance. The way he set up the chance for Darwin and he had other moments like this where he came out under pressure and then there was a foul and we got a free-kick. He did extremely well under massive pressure in the centre.
In the end, it was not the most difficult goal he ever scored, but it is exactly the goal each striker is dreaming of when it didn’t happen for a while, probably. Both goals were, for both players, really important. The next one who could have needed something like that is probably Darwin; the chance he had was a really good one. Anyway, it was obviously Darwin with an insane run for the first goal and a super pass.”
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Liverpool’s first goal a “key moment in the game”
Sean Dyche was left with plenty of positives for his sides in his second game in charge at Everton, and his first Merseyside Derby.
His side lasted almost until the end of the first half, and even the first goal for Liverpool came from an Everton attack, as James Tarkowski cannoned a head off the pitch.
The second came minutes after the second half as Gakpo rolled home, but then the Toffees defended resolutely when the game was beyond reasonable doubt, with Dyche happy at his side.
When asked about if the first goal was a decising factor in their defeat, he replied.
"It’s not a game defined in one moment, but it was a big moment. At that stage, we had just calmed the game down. They were on top a little bit without opening us too many times.
The shape was decent, the work ethic was decent. We were playing as well as we had hoped to with the ball. But then we cause trouble at the set-piece, that’s another weapon for us.
We don’t react as quickly as them, we know they can do that. Then it is a mid-read from Jordan (Pickford) and then they are in front."
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“It doesn’t just click overnight”
Despite defeat to their bitter rivals, Dyche was pleased and reminded fans to give his side time to gel to his style with the factor of only taking charge of his second game.
“We kept at it, there’s more to come, I am sure of that. The mentality is good, but we have to play as well. I said to the players at half-time, we want to work, we want to fight but you have to play as well. That next step is to be brave with the ball not just without the ball.
We’ve only been here for a short time and we've asked a lot of the players so I know it's been quite a big change in terms of what we feel is correct going forward. There's been a lot of information given. I don't think it just clicks overnight. “
