On 7 May 2022, Liverpool played out a 1-1 draw with Tottenham Hotspur on home soil as Luis Díaz’s deflected strike salvaged a point following Son Heung-min’s opener. The dropped points felt costly in the title race against Manchester City, but Liverpool did at least go top of the league on goal difference, albeit having played a game more.
It would be 532 days until the Anfield supporters next got the chance to see a table-topping Reds side, with Saturday’s 2-0 Merseyside derby victory ending the long wait. Last time, Manchester City thrashed Newcastle United 5-0 within 24 hours to open up a three-point advantage, and Liverpool’s spell as leader was even more brief here as Pep Guardiola’s men beat Brighton 2-1 in a 15.00 kick-off and Arsenal drew with Chelsea later on to nudge it down to third. On Monday, Spurs will have the chance to climb from fourth to first with a victory over Fulham, potentially demoting Jürgen Klopp’s side further. Still, though, Saturday’s moment in the sun should be celebrated. It’s certainly a far cry from last season, when Liverpool wasn’t even in the top four, never mind first place, for a single match-week, and it’s a sign that, for the moment at least, Liverpool is very much in the title picture.
Liverpool wasn’t remotely convincing against Everton, but these are the kind of ugly victories that are essential to any successful title challenge, and have characterized the team’s best seasons under Klopp. The first-half performance was decent as Liverpool played fluently through the thirds and largely controlled the contest, but it just lacked that bit of ruthlessness in the final third, particularly on the counterattack.
But in the second half, the Reds labored as they tried to break down an Everton side that was effectively camped in its own penalty area following a red card for Ashley Young. Some would have expected them to thump the 10-man Toffees, languishing as they are in 16th place, but as we’ve already seen this season (twice in Liverpool’s favor), playing with a numerical advantage can be deceptively difficult. In the 30 minutes that passed between the start of the half and the long-awaited breakthrough, Liverpool would only manage six shots, despite enjoying more than 80 per cent possession. Even then, you wouldn’t really call any of those a clear sight of goal — combined, they amounted to just 0.29 xG, with Mohamed Salah’s blocked effort the only one rated above 0.05 (0.14).
