Playing in a Merseyside derby is like being in a bubble. What has happened before, and what might happen afterwards just does not matter – all you care about is the here and now.
Playing in a Merseyside derby is like being in a bubble. What has happened before, and what might happen afterwards just does not matter – all you care about is the here and now.
This weekend’s clash at Goodison Park will mark another in the history books between Everton and Liverpool and Everton’s newly appointed boss Roberto Martinez is relishing his first derby considering that both teams are going strong in the Premier League.
Roberto Martinez, the Everton manager, believes there is no bigger fixture than the Merseyside derby and that Saturday’s clash has particular significance.
The Spaniard will take charge of his first showdown with Liverpool as Everton manager in the lunchtime kick-off.
Martinez said: “It is a massive game with worldwide significance.”
Sixth-place Everton are unbeaten at home this season and Liverpool has made a flying start with seven wins from 11 games putting them second in the Premier League table.
Liverpool’s boss Brendan Rodgers quipped: “Our start speaks for itself. We’ve be training hard and its paying off.
In Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge they have one of the best forward pairings in world football, and a win would really give them belief they can challenge for a place in the top four.
Martinez turned down the chance to manage Liverpool last summer, when owner John W Henry was looking for a successor to Kenny Dalglish.
Martinez, who was in charge of Wigan Athletic at the time, says he has no regrets over that decision.
He said: “You never have regrets, not in football. I always believed that, in football, the same as in life, things happen for a reason.”
The result of Saturday’s game will not have the same impact on the title it once had, when both Merseyside clubs were vying for more than just bragging rights from their city’s big match-up, but the good start both sides have made to the season gives it an extra edge.
The two-week Premier League break because of international fixtures will only add more tension to Saturday’s game.
Liverpool, second in the table – three points and four places ahead of Everton, come into the game off the back of a 4-0 home win against Fulham. For Everton, it’s a chance to keep up with the pacesetters and challenge for a place in Europe next season.
In Romelu Lukaku they have a player in great form this season. And Ross Barkley, just behind him, is a player who can change a game in an instant.
The way Everton and Liverpool have played this season, it’s likely that at least one of those four players will dictate the outcome of the game and, with the other quality players at the disposal of managers Roberto Martinez and Brendan Rodgers, we could be in for a classic.
Writer: Owen Hill
Photo: Brendan Rodgers and Roberto Martinez (Reuters)
Some element of this article have come from www.BBC.CO.UK
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