Everton vs. Liverpool: 6 Things We Learned
Everton and Liverpool shared the points in a breathless Merseyside derby that finished all square at 3-3 Saturday.
The visitors snatched an early lead through Philippe Coutinho, who found himself completely unmarked at a corner, before Kevin Mirallas soon replied from an Everton set piece.
The home side enjoyed much of the first-half possession but again fell behind as Luis Suarez struck a fierce free-kick past Tim Howard.
Facing a 2-1 deficit, the Toffees threw themselves forward during a frantic second period and a late, two-goal salvo from Romelu Lukaku temporarily sent the home fans into hysteria.
With minutes remaining, Roberto Martinez looked to have secured a memorable win in his first Merseyside derby; however—as they have done so often in this fixture—Liverpool grabbed the last laugh as Daniel Sturridge glanced home an 89th-minute header.
Both sides will rue certain incidents: Liverpool can justifiably argue Mirallas should have been sent off and saw Joe Allen miss a sitter, while the Toffees spurned a number of inviting openings and conceded some basic goals.
Here's a look at some Everton-related talking points to emerge from this game.
Barkley Dominant from Deep
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There's no better place to start than with the immense performance of Ross Barkley.
The gifted 19-year-old produced arguably his best game for the Toffees in his first Merseyside derby, demonstrating all of his expansive repertoire.
He began lining up behind Lukaku and seemed his side's most likely creator, but he was even more influential in the second period playing as an orthodox midfielder.
Leighton Baines' injury prompted a reshuffle that left Barkley in this unfamiliar, deeper role, but the England international excelled. He's clearly a natural attacker but there's certainly potential for him to develop into a regular midfielder as well.
Every second-half attack seemed to have his imprint on it and he enjoyed far more time to pass and create.
Though more dangerous in a forward berth, he's often rushed and stuck looking at his laces, unable to deliver once he's beaten a man. By coming from deep, he made others more dangerous and unbalanced Liverpool's defence.
Top players have such ability they can perform in several roles, and Martinez will be intrigued by his youngster's instant impact in a different position.
Dead-Ball Debacle
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Everton were arguably the better side in passing, creating and shooting more, but their work in possession was undone by some woeful defending at set pieces.
Managers detest conceding a single goal at dead-ball situations, yet Everton allowed their rivals a hat-trick of particularly preventable strikes.
First, Coutinho waltzed past Barkley and Lukaku to slot home unmarked from a corner before Suarez hit a sublime free-kick for Liverpool's second. There's little doubting the quality of the Uruguayan's strike, but question marks can be raised about Tim Howard's wall.
Goalkeepers tend to line the post up with the second man from the end of the wall, but replays suggest the Toffees were lined up at least one man out of position, allowing Suarez extra room to score.
Finally, having wrestled themselves a lead, no player got in front of Sturridge to prevent him deflecting home Steven Gerrard's wicked delivery.
Martinez has already gone on record expressing his dislike for set pieces but must now focus on improving his side's approach in these situations.
Attacking Improvement
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After consecutive 0-0 draws, there's no doubt Everton were a different animal in attack, breaking through a well-organised defence on a number of occasions.
Lukaku and Gerard Deulofeu were among those to spurn inviting openings as Simon Mignolet kept the away side in the game.
In total, Everton registered 12 shots on target to Liverpool's five, a total not beaten by the Toffees in any game over the past two seasons.
To put that into context, Everton struck just two shots on target in their previous match at Crystal Palace and only one in the game before that against Tottenham.
Creatively, Everton also fashioned out 14 chances to Liverpool's seven, their most since early-season matches with Norwich and West Brom.
Deulofeu Demands Greater Role
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Gerard Deulofeu's role has been increased in recent weeks, playing 27, 34 and 40 minutes from the bench in Everton's past three matches.
After another eye-catching cameo in this game, he seems poised for a first Premier League start in the next few weeks.
Still understandably erratic at such a young age, the 19-year-old starlet on loan from Barcelona terrified the Liverpool defence with some direct running. In just 40 minutes on the field he dribbled past more opponents (five) than other player in this match.
Once past his man, his end product and decision-making still fluctuate in quality, but the fact he passes players draws extra attention and pulls defences out of shape.
Though it's hard to imagine who gets the hook, with Mirallas, Barkley and Steven Pienaar in his position, Martinez cannot leave Deulofeu sidelined much longer.
Baines Injury a Worry
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One issue for Evertonians to track is the severity of Leighton Baines' injury, which Martinez has already revealed will require an X-ray, via Everton's official website.
The left-back was withdrawn on 50 minutes with a toe injury, leaving Gareth Barry to shuffle back into defence.
This was far from ideal, with Barry so influential in midfield, but Everton remained in the ascendancy as Barkley excelled in his place.
However, moving forward, Baines is clearly key for Everton and will be a substantial loss if he is indeed to be sidelined. The left-back has only missed five league games in the past four seasons and is integral to the Toffees' play at both ends of the field.
Any absence will presumably provide an opportunity for Bryan Oviedo, who's yet to convince in the defensive third, and it will also give Everton a taste of life without Baines—a scenario Manchester United will be trying to enforce come January.
Mental Improvements
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Conceding so late will undoubtedly frustrate fans, but there are many positives to take from this display.
Individually, Barkley, Pienaar, Phil Jagielka and James McCarthy were outstanding, but a greater victory can be taken from the team's overall mental showing.
With so many recent defeats piled up against Liverpool this squad too often played with fear under David Moyes, appearing beaten before stepping onto the field. Few players excelled, and a one-goal deficit was often enough to defeat some overly cautious sides.
Martinez's outfit were far more adventurous in this game, with most players reaching a high level of play. Everton twice roared back to equalise and remained attacking enough to then snatch a lead before conceding a cruel late goal.
The Toffees won't be satisfied by a point, and rightly so, but such persistent comebacks will only improve confidence and erase any lingering mental fragility around this fixture.
On this evidence, Martinez's Everton should enjoy more competitive battles against their local rival.
Statistics via WhoScored
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