Liverpool put five past Everton for new unbeaten club record as Marco Silva teeters on the brink after derby defeat If Divock Origi’s injury-time winner in this fixture a year ago was torturous, the Belgian’s contribution in a 5-2 hammering may mean the bell tolls on Silva’s Goodison career.
Everton are now in the bottom three after another chastening evening across Stanley Park, while their neighbours have their 14th win in 15 Premier League games.
The Kop gleefully sang ‘going down’ as Gini Wijnaldum polished off victory with the fifth in injury time. Never has the gap between these clubs looked so stark. Rarely has Everton’s immediate and long-term prospects seemed so bleak.
Even Jurgen Klopp’s fiddling with his line-up - he left out Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino - did not spare the Everton defence. Liverpool scored four in the first half. They looked like they would beat Jordan Pickford at will at one stage, although their chances of a relaxing 90 minutes continue to be undermined by an unreliable back four. The quest for a clean sheet goes on as Everton tried in vain to avoid complete humiliation thanks to Michael Kean and Richarlison. They might have scored more.
But in Origi, Liverpool have a striker who specialises in Mersey derbies and European epics. He struck twice before half-time, Everton’s defenders seemingly in terror at the mere sight of his number so much space did they afford him.
Xherdan Shaqiri and Sadio Mane scored the others, Everton showing willing but frightening lack of quality and organisation at the back.
Silva has been on the brink so long now he resembles the coach in the final scene of The Italian Job. Every time Liverpool attacked here it was another nudge over the cliff. He was running out of ideas to save himself.
Rarely, if ever, has an Everton manager headed into a Merseyside derby where the consequences were so extreme. A win would have made Silva the first victorious Everton coach at Anfield since 1999. Defeat would probably mean he did not make it to end of the week. There was a time, particularly when Mane scored Liverpool’s fourth in the 45th minute, he may have considered himself lucky to make it to half-time. From the moment Origi exposed the visitors’ defensive limitations on six minutes, Silva’s cause looked hopeless.
Klopp had dangled a carrot with his team selection, seeking to preserve a considerable Premier League lead while keeping players fresh during a busy period. That could be the only explanation for a surprising choice which omitted Salah and Firmino. You may also need a trawl through the archives to find the last time a fit Liverpool captain was left out of the Merseyside derby, but Jordan Henderson was also rested.
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