Committed thuggery wins the day

There are too many superlatives to describe this bitter, hard-fought encounter between the Merseyside rivals which saw two red cards in each half as well as a number of crunching and poorly-timed, plus some nasty, tackles.  So I will dispense with a poetic introduction talking of "passion and combativeness in a war of attrition" and instead focus on the finer details of a game that, minus the ball, was nothing more than brutal example of a city divided in hate.

A finely disciplined Liverpool side, down to 10 men for almost 60 minutes of this truculent match, easily held at bay a guileless Everton attack to win 1-0 in the 213th Merseyside derby.  The goal came courtesy of an inch-perfect corner from Steven Gerrard right onto the head of the battling Kuyt who easily out-muscled Howard and Neville to glance a header into the net.

Fight Club (Or the fight for fourth)

As the media circus over the Terry affair continues even after Capello's decision to demote the defender and the nation's army of bloggers are inundated with slavering, barely comprehendible comments from football fans, the issue of the fight for a top-four place renews with some interest today.  Liverpool have the chance to sneak into the top four, if only for a few hours, before Tottenham face Aston Villa at White Hart Lane if they can overcome an in-form Everton who have won their last three league games and produced a near-match winning performance at the Emirates before succumbing to a late Rosicky goal.  Victory is far from assured for Liverpool who are also on a good run, unbeaten in the last six league games, winning 4 and drawing two of those matches.