NOTE: THIS MATCH WAS POSTPONED ON SATURDAY MORNING DUE TO ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS
Today's Merseyside derby at Goodison Park has been postponed due to adverse weather conditions.
— Everton (@Everton) December 7, 2024
Full details to follow. pic.twitter.com/ikF8iJRTGs
Football betting tips: Merseyside derby
2pts Under 2.5 goals at 5/4 (Betfair, Paddy Power)
1pt Jordan Pickford to be shown a card at 6/1 (Ladbrokes, Coral)
0.5pt No goalscorer at 16/1 (Sky Bet, bet365)
0.5pt Jarrad Branthwaite to score anytime at 25/1 (bet365)
BuildABet @ 325/1
- Under 2.5 goals
- Pickford to be shown a card
- Branthwaite 1+ total shots
Arne Slot's first Merseyside derby will be Goodison's last.
The circumstances are undeniably unique but the nature of the contest is unlikely to be.
When Everton and Liverpool meet it's rarely a spectacle. Blood and thunder more commonplace than goals and chances. Too much to lose. Not worth the risk. Best to play safe.
It should still be quite the atmosphere at Saturday lunchtime, just not necessarily one for the purists.
What are the best bets?
It may seem odd to oppose goals given both sides' midweek exertions.
Newcastle provided hope to Liverpool's title rivals by scoring three times at St James' Park, earning a point through a stoppage-time Fabian Schar equaliser presented by an uncharacteristic Caoimhin Kelleher mistake.
It was a rare bump in the serene Slot tenure, with his record still a remarkable W18 D2 L1 in all competitions, and his side seven points clear at the top of the Premier League just 14 games in to the season.
Everton, meanwhile, released some of the growing pressure on Sean Dyche, helping his prospects of being the man to lead them into their new stadium at Bramley-Moore Docks.
The 4-0 thrashing of Wolves ended a five-game winless run, a spell in which they had scored just one goal.
Saturday's circumstances are very different.
This fixture has seen the most goalless draws (12) in Premier League history.
Eleven of the last 13 meetings and all of the last five have involved UNDER 2.5 GOALS. Unders at 5/4 and NO GOALSCORER at 16/1 are advised.
Since fixing their early-season defensive issues, which admittedly reared an ugly head at Old Trafford last weekend, Everton have shared three goalless draws in 10 league games, with seven going unders.
Pickford plays pantomime villain
There is a perception that in recent seasons JORDAN PICKFORD has calmed down.
It's a fair reflection of his growing maturity, with him now far less likely to do something rash. His game management - more specifically time wasting - has also got better, or worse depending on your point of view.
Pickford was booked five times last season and on six occasions in 2022/23 - including in both Merseyside derbies.
The nature of his bookings is consistent. This season he has received two yellow cards (both for time wasting) in stoppage time when Everton led Crystal Palace having taken just one point from their opening five games and in a febrile Athens atmosphere when England led Greece in a must-win Nations League tie.
He should be backed at 6/1 TO BE SHOWN A CARD here.
Everton and England's goalkeeper picks the moment his team needs him most. And he'll be needed on Saturday.
Just in case Jarrad
It's possible I would never forgive myself should 25/1 JARRAD BRANTHWAITE SCORE ANYTIME and I didn't tip it.
All four of Everton's goals in midweek came from set-pieces, with Craig Dawson doing his best to help by scoring two own goals.
Liverpool may well write off Schar's equaliser as a Kelleher error, but their much-changed defence, featuring both Jarrel Quansah and Joe Gomez for the first time this season, failed to pick up the Switzerland international's free run at the back post.
At such a big price, it's worth backing Branthwaite to repeat his goalscoring heroics of last season's Goodison derby.
He's had an injury-disrupted season so far but is no stranger to finding the net, doing so three times in the final 16 games last term.
Team news
Everton remain without Youssef Chermiti, James Garner and Tim Iroegbuman. Armando Broja made his long-awaited Everton debut as a midweek substitute and will hope to feature from the bench again.
Trent Alexander-Arnold should be fit to start for Liverpool, meaning it's likely Joe Gomez will revert to centre-back with Jarell Quansah dropping to the bench.
Alexis Mac Allister is suspended, Ibrahima Konate, Conor Bradley, Alisson, Diogo Jota and Federico Chiesa are all injured.
Predicted line-ups
Everton: Pickford; Young, Tarkowski, Branthwaite, Mykolenko; Ndiaye, Gueye, Mangala, Doucoure, McNeil; Calvert-Lewin.
Liverpool: Kelleher; Alexander-Arnold, Quansah, Van Dijk, Robertson; Gravenberch, Jones, Szoboszlai; Salah, Nunez, Diaz.
Match facts
- Everton won 2-0 in their last Premier League game against Liverpool in April, last winning consecutive league Merseyside derbies in the 1984-85 campaign.
- Liverpool’s 2-0 loss in this exact fixture last season ended a 12-game unbeaten away run in the Premier League against Everton (W3 D9). They’ve not lost consecutive visits to Goodison Park since a run of three between 1992 and 1994.
- Everton vs Liverpool is the fixture to have seen the most red cards (23) and been drawn 0-0 the most (12) in Premier League history.
- No side has scored more 90th minute winners against an opponent in the competition than Liverpool have against Everton (5).
- Since the start of last season, Liverpool are unbeaten in all eight of their Premier League games kicking off at 12.30 on Saturday (W6 D2), including a 2-0 win against Everton. Meanwhile, Everton are winless in their last six such matches (D2 L4), conceding exactly two goals in each game.
- Everton have won just four of their 47 Premier League matches against teams starting the day top of the table (D9 L34). Only Spurs (35) have lost more games against table-topping teams in the competition than the Toffees.
- Everton manager Sean Dyche has lost 12 Premier League matches against Liverpool (W3 D2), only losing more against Man City (14) and Arsenal (13). However, should he win this game, he’ll have more wins against the Reds (2) than the previous seven Toffees managers managed combined (W1 D10 L8 – Martinez, Koeman, Allardyce, Silva, Ancelotti, Benitez and Lampard)
- This is Arne Slot’s first meeting with Everton as Liverpool manager. Only one Reds boss has won their first ever league Merseyside derby when that match has come away from home, with Kenny Dalglish overseeing a 3-2 victory in September 1985.
- Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah has scored seven Premier League goals against Everton – only Steven Gerrard (9) has scored more Merseyside derby goals in the competition.
- Only Dwight McNeil (3 goals, 3 assists) has been involved in more Premier League goals for Everton this season than Ashley Young (1 goal, 3 assists). Young became the fourth-oldest scorer in Premier League history on Wednesday night, aged 39 years and 148 days against Wolves.
- Mohamed Salah has scored and assisted in 37 Premier League matches, the most of any player in history. He has netted in each of his last seven games but has never scored in eight in a row – Daniel Sturridge is the only Liverpool player to do so, achieving that feat in 2013-14.
Odds correct at 1530 GMT on 05/12/24
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