Liverpool and Everton playing is always a game that fires the whole city up but Jurgen Klopp has tried his best to reduce the anger involved in these matches.
As reported by Paul Joyce in The Times, the manager said: “At the beginning I remember I showed the players videos of [Jamie] Carragher in the derby and Stevie [Gerrard] where he got red cards, I love one, and respect the other a lot.
“That’s what the people expect: that if you get a red card against Everton, it’s fine. It’s not. It’s absolutely not because we want to win the game, and it’s the only reason why we go there.”
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It was a bold and ambitious move from the German to remove the dangerous nature of the derby, whilst trying to maintain his famous level of intensity during every game we play.
Despite the fact that this fixture has seen the most red cards of any game in Premier League history, it’s actually been 14 years since the Reds have had a man sent off in this tie.
In 2010, both Sotirios Kyrgiakos and Steven Pienaar were dismissed in the same game but since then the Toffees have seen four men given their marching orders (Jack Rodwell 2011, Ramiro Funes Mori 2016, Richarlison 2020, Ashley Young 2023).
It’s interesting to hear the 56-year-old’s comments on the two club icons too, with a clear preference for one men being shared without revealing who it was.
It’s safe to assume that a former colleague in Steven Gerrard will be the favourite, especially with Jamie Carragher’s role in the media winding several people up.
Regardless of this though, you can see that our coach arrived from Dortmund with a plan to reduce red cards and he certainly delivered.