Jurgen Klopp is crossing Stanley Park and coming to Goodison Park for the final time as Liverpool manager and Everton need to make life as difficult as possible for him and his team even though it’s a fine line and you don’t want the occasion to get to you.
Klopp has never lost a game at Goodison Park but he’s only won two games there and Liverpool won’t be looking forward to going there.
When Klopp first came to England, he tried to bring these occasions down and make out it wasn’t going to bother him too much but history has shown with the antics he’s produced in the fixture, running on to the pitch at Anfield and then his exchange of words with the Goodison ball boy, it does matter to him. He can say what he likes but Merseyside Derbies can bring out the best or the worst in you.
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I just love derby week, no matter where you are in the table. You can feel the occasion and you don’t know what can happen.
The derby is all about mentality and bravery. You need to learn from your previous experiences of playing in the derby.
You’ve got to remain cool but be sharp and ready to pounce. You can’t lose your rag or dive in though like Ashley Young did at Anfield when he got sent off and put us in a difficult situation.
Everton need to learn from that because we know what Liverpool are all about. There aren’t going to be any surprises about how Liverpool are going to play football.
The pressure is always going to be there against your local rivals but hopefully following the win over Nottingham Forest, Everton’s players can relax a bit more.
Liverpool are still in contention for the Premier League title and that was also the case in my first derby. It was only my second game for Everton and we drew 1-1 to help stop Liverpool from being crowned champions so hopefully 27 years on we can do the same again.
