Ryan Gravenberch excellent, 4/10 Conor Bradley not good enough – Liverpool player ratings vs Everton
Liverpool emerged 2-1 victors against Everton in the latest edition of the Merseyside derby at Anfield on Saturday.
Liverpool had the better of the early possession and soon made Everton pay, as Mo Salah played a lofted ball into Ryan Gravenberch‘s path and the midfielder cutely lifted the ball over Jordan Pickford for the opener.
Salah nearly doubled the hosts’ lead as he cut in on his left foot and sent a shot just wide in the 15th minute, but Hugo Ekitike did go on to grab a second for the Reds as he latched on to Gravenberch’s pass to sweep it into the bottom corner.
The Reds were unable to build on their lead in the second half, however, and veteran Everton midfielder Idrissa Gueye soon halved the deficit with a fine first-time finish just before the hour mark after Iliman Ndiaye had knocked it down from a cross.
Liverpool held on for all three points despite late pressure from their rivals, with Arne Slot’s side continuing their great start to the new campaign with yet another victory.
Game of two halves for Liverpool’s defence again
Alisson – 7
Had very little to do in the first half, but then became busier in the second and stood up to any shots on his goal. Couldn’t do anything about Gueye’s well-hit strike.
Conor Bradley – 4
Looked slow and lethargic as the game went on. Allowed Jack Grealish way too much space to create and wreak havoc in the second half.
Virgil van Dijk – 6
Kept Beto and Thierno Barry quiet and rarely had to try too hard to stop Everton’s giants as they focused on attacking down the wings, but has had better games.
Ibrahima Konate – 6
Konate similarly hardly had to defend one-on-one at all throughout the 90 minutes, but he won the majority of his aerial duels and progressed the ball forward well.
Milos Kerkez – 5
Much like Bradley, Kerkez was targeted by the Toffees due to his willingness to attack and so sometimes got caught out of position. Didn’t create enough going forward.
Gravenberch leads Liverpool midfield
Dominik Szoboszlai – 7
A much quieter game than his last one in the league at Anfield, but he did his job well by getting the ball to the wide players and keeping a good shape when pressing the Toffees’ defence.
Ryan Gravenberch – 9 (Player of the Match)
Outstanding. Gravenberch was the best player on the pitch against Atletico, and he was again here as he scored a great opener and then set Ekitike up for the second. Potentially his best performance in a Reds shirt.
Alexis Mac Allister – 6
Sometimes caught napping as Everton tried to drive the ball forward from midfield, but still mostly looked assured and like his usual all-action self.
Attack not quite right for the Reds
Mo Salah – 6
Salah had an unusually quiet outing against Everton, but still notched a goal contribution as he played a great pass to Gravenberch for the opener. You just can’t stop him.
Hugo Ekitike – 7
Was handed another start ahead of Alexander Isak and proved Arne Slot correct with a decent performance and goal, but did not keep it up in the second half and was rightly taken off.
Cody Gakpo – 6
Some decent flashes early on, but he was mostly stopped in his tracks by Jake O’Brien all afternoon. Again, he was rightly taken off on the hour mark after an ineffective 15 minutes prior.
Substitutes
Florian Wirtz (for Gakpo 61′) – 5
Another lacklustre showing from one of Liverpool’s big-money imports, as he rarely managed to get on the ball in the final third and was booked for a shirt-pull on Ndiaye.
Curtis Jones (for Mac Allister 61′) – 6
The England midfielder provided some much-needed fresh legs in the middle of the park, and he kept things ticking over well in tense moments for his side.
Alexander Isak (for Ekitike 67′) – 5
Isak cost Liverpool a whopping £125million from Newcastle on deadline day, but he continued his slow start to life at Anfield here as he only touched the ball seven times and did not take a shot on goal.