What Jack Grealish faced at full-time spoke volumes about Everton loss to Liverpool

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This was another game in which they pushed their fiercest rivals to the edge.

The final minutes of this game were marked by Dominik Szoboszlai time-wasting by the corner flag and two desperate, vital back post headers by Milos Kerkez to deny Jake O’Brien what would have been a deserved equaliser.

Put simply, the away end was full because those supporters had a cause to believe in right until Darren England blew the final whistle.

For much of this match that looked unlikely to be the case.

There was a sense of anticipation going into this Merseyside derby.

Everton have changed since last season.

The personnel changed slightly but the approach was overhauled.

The Blues started the second half on the front foot and quickly realised they could hurt Liverpool.

The ball was fed out wide and Grealish and Ndiaye forced full backs into dancing backwards.

This was when Grealish came into his own, drawing foul after foul from the likes of Conor Bradley and Szoboszlai and leaving Moyes with his head in his hands as he looked for the overlapping Vitalii Mykolenko only for the Ukraine international to be too cautious to help.

The goal that gave Everton hope came from their two best players, Grealish standing the ball to the back post, where Ndiaye cushioned it into the path of Senegal team-mate Gueye.

But this is another game in which progress was clear.

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Fine margins were the difference - the absence of Branthwaite, who has been excellent in recent derbies, the caution of Mykolenko, Beto’s struggle to test two defenders he had previously caused nightmares all hindered Everton at key moments.

They died trying, though.