Everton’s attention has swiftly been diverted towards the derby, with Liverpool making the short trip across Stanley Park tomorrow night.
It is always a hotly-anticipated fixture, and whilst the form book never really goes out of the window, that will not stop Evertonians from dreaming.
After all, the pressure is completely off after Sunday’s win over Nottingham Forest, with a five-point gap between the Toffees and the bottom three.
The Reds, meanwhile, know that only a win is enough to uphold their Premier League title ambitions, which took a huge dent last weekend at the hands of Crystal Palace.
What Everton wouldn’t do to put the final nail in that coffin…
Chris Sutton predicts the Merseyside derby
Speaking on last night’s Monday Night Club, Chris Sutton offered his verdict on the Merseyside derby.
And whilst he offered plenty of credit to Everton for turning around their fortunes in recent weeks, similar to Jamie Carragher, he remains somewhat pessimistic regarding their chances of actually picking up a result.
The former Blackburn Rovers striker stated: ‘They would love nothing more than to basically cement their Premier League survival but to get one over on their arch-rivals.
‘It’s a fascinating game, it really is, because Everton will be so fired up for this. Who knows which team Jurgen Klopp is going to pick for this game? Left Salah out. Left Darwin Nunez out. Left Szoboszlai out. Made changes. It worked, I’ve got to say, I thought that was a really tricky fixture at Fulham.
‘A draw will not be enough. I actually think that Liverpool will create enough opportunities against Everton. It’s just whether they take them or not.’
Why was the Everton vs Liverpool game postponed?
Strangely, this Merseyside derby will be played on a Wednesday night, under Goodison Park’s floodlights.
It should make for a raucous home atmosphere, but inevitably nerves will creep in and could leave some sat in worried silence.
The reason for this unusual kick-off is due to Liverpool’s progression in the FA Cup, as they beat Southampton to reach the quarter-finals of the competition.
So, the original date for the derby, March 17th, was no longer doable.
That was instead replaced with a trip to Old Trafford, where Manchester United enjoyed a miraculous comeback to kill off another avenue for a potential final-year Klopp trophy.
Now, should the Toffees claim any kind of result tomorrow night, the final opportunity might be culled, much to the delight of Evertonians.
Receive a digest of our best Everton content each week direct to your mailbox
