This will be Jurgen Klopp's last appearance in a Merseyside derby, having won nine of Liverpool's 16 games against Everton, and a win tonight would see him become the first manager in the club's history to win 10 Merseyside derby.
However, Strike Iron believes that this record is not so easy to get.
First of all, the Merseyside derby has always been known for its big action and foul play, and in the fifth round of the 2020-2021 season against Everton, Pickford's scissor kick caused Van Dijk to seriously injure him, who recuperated for 284 days before returning, this injury not only allowed title rivals Manchester City to easily win the title, but Van Dijk also missed the European Championship the following year.
This season's Everton still maintain the characteristics of liking fierce confrontations, and their average tackles and fouls per game are the second in the Premier League, and they are very ferocious with their feet.
In Everton's favour, today's referee Andy Madele, who is the Premier League's least favourable referee, has only issued 78 yellow cards in 20 games this season, averaging 3.9 per game, the fewest of any referee in the Premier League. This kind of lax enforcement may make Everton very comfortable to play, and as a Liverpool fan, Strike Iron seriously suspects that he was sent by the FA to stop Liverpool.
On Liverpool's side, Jota, their most efficient striker, was injured again, and in the last game against Fulham, it was Jota's calm one-on-one handling that allowed Liverpool to ensure the win. The Portuguese striker has scored 10 goals with just 41 shots on goal this season.
And Salah, who failed to start in the last game, Nunez is likely to return to the starting line-up, what is the current state of these two strikers? Salah has only 10.7% shot conversion rate since the Africa Cup of Nations, and before the Africa Cup of Nations, his shot conversion rate was as high as 21.5%.
Nunez also converted just 11 per cent of his shots, while he scored just 11 of his 15 expected goals, the second-most wasted player in the Premier League.
Everton's attacking woes have been lackluster, but they have conceded just 26 goals in the field of action this season, making them the third-best defensive team in the Premier League.
Less of the most efficient striker, Liverpool's frontfield is now a group of strikers without shooting boots and frequent spitting cakes.