Liverpool v Everton: Premier League – live! | Football

69 min: Vital save from Pickford! Firmino and Shaqiri combine nicely to put Salah through on goal. His first touch is superb, across Keane, and then he whips a close-range shot that is smothered by the outrushing Pickford. Salah didn’t have much room to work with but it was still excellent, decisive goalkeeping from Pickford.

69 min Everton are playing a straight 5-3-2 now, with Richarlison up front alongside Calvert-Lewin. It hasn’t made much difference, though – almost all of the game is taking place in their half.

67 min Mane is booked for dissent after being penalised for fouling Holgate.

65 min Mane plays a good ball to the overlapping Alexander-Arnold, whose low first-time cross flashes past everyone in the six-yard box. Close close close.

64 min Sigurdsson, on the left side of the area, drives a bouncing ball straight at Alisson. It was a half chance at best.

63 min Liverpool make their second substitution as well. Xherdan Shaqiri is on for Curtis Jones.

62 min Another Everton change: Dominic Calvert-Lewin replaces James Rodriguez, whose lovely pass created the goal.

61 min: Chance for Everton! Coleman lofts a pass in behind the defence for Richarlison, who takes too long and loses the ball. He looked offside but the flag didn’t go up, and replays show he was definitely onside. That was a great chance – he should have hit it first time but tried to turn back inside Phillips.

59 min A change for Everton: Glyfi Sigurdsson replaces Andre Gomes, who has been booked.

58 min Salah dives just outside the area after feeling a slight touch from Digne. Chris Kavanagh isn’t interested.

57 min Liverpool have had 83 per cent of the possession in the second half.

56 min Gomes is robbed by Thiago, 25 yards from goal. Firmino picks up the loose ball but hits a meek drive straight at Pickford.

53 min: Vital tackle from Keane! Mane plays a give-and-go with Robertson and is shaping to shoot when Keane makes a desperate lunging tackle. That was brilliant defending.

51 min Liverpool’s tempo has been better since half-time. Mane is playing more centrally, too, with nobody on the left wing at the moment.

50 min A couple of opportunities for Liverpool. Alexander-Arnold’s cross is crucially clerared by Holgate in the six-yard box, and then the stretching Mane heads over at the far post. That was a difficult chance.

49 min Alexander-Arnold’s cross is confidently claimed by Pickford. So far – so far – he has been flawless.

48 min Richarlison has a goal disallowed for offside. No controversy, he was miles off.

47 min Mane heads straight at Pickford from Robertson’s cross. He strained his neck muscles as he jumped backwards, but couldn’t power the header back across the keeper.

“Injuries,” says Gary Naylor. “Okay, it wasn’t quite defending a title, but have a look at this motley crew.”

I’d like to know more about that team. They weren’t a patch of the awesome 1984-85 side, yet they won the blooming league.

“Forty-five minutes to go,” says Mary Waltz, trembling uncontrollably. “This is the only time I regret giving up drinking 20 years ago. The early goal has given me hope, an extremely dangerous state of mind for an Everton fan.”

“I appreciate it’s been a difficult and strange season but Klopp has to take a degree of responsibility for the fatigue that his players are experiencing,” says Gerry Scott. “Remember when they were 5-0 up at Palace but he somehow thought it was necessary to bring Salah on? Madness.”

Agreed. Diogo Jota was injured in a meaningless game as well. At the start of the season, my colleague Paul Doyle – who reads football better than anyone I know – said Liverpool wouldn’t win the league and that Klopp should have sent the front three and the full-backs on holiday the moment Liverpool clinched the title last year. He was right.

Peep peep! Richarlison’s excellent early goal has given Everton a sniff of a first win at Anfield since 1999. Liverpool dominated without creating any clear chances, though Jordan Pickford did make a stunning save from Jordan Henderson’s volley. Henderson then became the latest Liverpool centre-back to get injured, going off with what looked like a groin injury.

43 min Mane and Alexander-Arnold has looked quite sharp for Liverpool, but Salah, Firmino and Robertson have been subdued. It has to be fatigue; Robertson, in particular, is nothing like the elemental force of 2018-20.

42 min “Ben Davies needn’t worry,” says Gary Byrne. “He’ll get his chance when Kabak picks up an injury.”

41 min Andre Gomes is booked for an off-the-ball block on Salah.

41 min Liverpool have dominated the half without creating any clear chances. Both Pickford’s saves came from long-range strikes. But Everton might be asking for trouble by sitting so deep; I don’t think this will end 1-0.

39 min “Hi Rob,” says Toby Podmore. “I could be wrong, but didn’t the throw-in leading to the Everton goal have to be retaken, because it never entered play the first time? In which case, it was not from 15 yards inside the Everton half (which is where the first decision was given) but rather 10 yards inside the Liverpool half. I appreciate that everyone steals a few yards here and there, but 25 yards for a direct effect on the goal is a bit much, non? I could be sorely mistaken, though…”

I didn’t see that, though you might be right. Either way, I wouldn’t mention it in Roy Keane’s company.

38 min Jurgen Klopp is having a moan to the fourth official Paul Tierney.

38 min Robertson’s flighted free-kick is headed into the side netting by Phillips, a good effort from a very tight angle.

35 min “There are multiple reasons why Liverpool have struggled this season but I really would like to have seen us fail with our first choice squad,” says Niall Mullen. “This never-ending conveyor belt of injuries (a destruction-line if you will) is soul-crushing.”

I’m trying to think of a team that has won the league despite a series of injuries. Arsenal had quite a few in 1997-98 and 2001-02, though they didn’t lose 47 centre-backs. Manchester City this season, though their injury list probably isn’t as bad as Liverpool’s.

33 min: Big save from Alisson! Everton could be 2-0 up, and it was all the work of their wing-backs. Digne curled in a brilliant cross towards the far post, where Coleman got the wrong side of Robertson and met the ball with a flying header. But it was too close to Alisson, who pushed the ball away as he fell to his left. Coleman should have scored.

32 min “I’m sure an Everton fan out there will confirm this,” says Rick Harris, “but I don’t think Everton have lost a game where Richarlison has scored first. If Liverpool turn this around they will deserve that Europa League place.”

30 min Holgate is penalised for what looked like a good tackle on Mane. Free-kick to Liverpool, 25 yards out…

29 min Nat Phillips is preferred to Ben Davies as the replacement for Henderson.

29 min Henderson is done. Liverpool have had such desperate luck with injuries that now even the makeshift centre-backs are getting injured. Do you see what happens, Larry, when you sell Dejan Lovren?