Liverpool 4, Everton 0: Derby First Thoughts

Liverpool 4 Gerrard 21'; Sturridge 33', 35'; Suarez 50'
Everton 0

• Ross Barkley having that much space in the defensive midfield area and ripping off a lethal shot it not really the best way to start the match.
  
  
• But Jordan Henderson having a rip that forced a good save from Tim Howard is a nice reply. Oh man the nerves.
  
  
• Liverpool on the front foot early on, but Everton are getting their licks in. Classic Derby form, and also a recipe for unadulterated terror.
  
  
• The early formation was an interesting one, with the shape almost set up like a very fluid 4-2-3-1, with Henderson just ahead of Gerrard in the double pivot, Coutinho in the hole, and Sturridge and Suarez taking turns swapping between the left flank and a central position up top. The squad executing a high press to keep Everton off balance was nice to see as well.
  
  
• That shot from Raheem Sterling in the 17th minute was THE chance that couldn't be missed. Unfortunately, Sterling's still working on his finishing, and he pushed it straight in to a diving Howard instead of around or over him.
  
  
• STEVEN GERRARD YOU BEAUTIFUL MAN-GOD YOU.
  
  
• The corner that saw Gerrard score could not have been more disastrous for Everton. Not only did Gareth Barry completely lose Gerrard as his mark, he slipped and fell in to Romelu Lukaku, injuring the striker's ankle and forcing him out of the match. As Lukaku had been their only consistent attacking threat early on, that was a huge loss for the visitors.
  
  
• Aly Cissokho might be one of the worst passers of the ball I have ever seen.
  
  
• For those who have been doubting Simon Mignolet of late, his save against Jagielka in the 30th minute renders your arguments invalid. He has things he needs to improve, but in pure one-on-one shot stopping, there's not many better in the EPL right now.
  
  
• Liverpool's second... where do I begin? John Stones got sucked forward from his right back position by Aly Cissokho's inability to do anything especially useful. Daniel Sturridge saw the space he left and ran in to it, getting fed with a gorgeous deep ball. After that, Howard was the only thing in his way, and he chipped in perfectly.
  
  
• Right after, Suarez was felled hard on a break, giving Liverpool a free kick just inside their own half. The service went straight to Sturridge, who again abused Stones to find space, and the cheekiest of lobs over Howard found the back of the net, again. HILARITY.
  
  
• The Sterling "foul" was a bit of a contentious call, to say the least. Sterling definitely initiated the contact when he pushed by James McCarthy, but McCarthy clear as day pulled him down with an NFL horse collar tackle, grabbing the collar of his shirt and pulling him down from behind. But, Martin Atkinson is awful, so the call went the other way.
  
  
• Word just came down that Lukaku's injury involves ankle ligament damage. That sucks if it's true and he's out a long time. He's a great striker, and that was a horrible fluke thing that happened to him. I wish him a speedy recovery.
  
  
• It could easily be argued that Gareth Barry's yellow card just before the break for felling a sprinting Sterling should have been his second or third yellow card of the match, but the commentators called it a "harsh decision." Are they watching the same match?
  
  
• As poor of form as he's been in lately, Philippe Coutinho was awesome in the first half. Cool and clever in possession, played some lovely balls to the attacking trio ahead of him, and pressed like a maniac in defense. It was great to see him looking so good after he'd been anything but recently.
  
  
• 3-0 up at the half and dominating the run of play. I'll take that.
  
  
• LUIS SUAREZ IS BETTER THAN YOU.
  
  
• Kevin Mirallas should have been sent off. Late, swinging his arm at Toure's head, no intent to play the ball. Blah.
  
  
• It's a shame Sterling got brought down by Howard for that penalty, because he deserved a goal for his play. Also, I think Sturridge killed someone in the Kop with that miss. Holy crap.
  
  
• If Steven Gerrard has been consistently great at one thing this season, it's his free kicks. That service in the 59th minute... hnnnnnnngh.
  
  
• Hahahaha, Gareth Barry arguing that Gerrard should be sent off for his foul on Mirallas (watch his lips, he says "why isn't that a red?") when he's played like a crapbag all match long is hilarious.
  
  
• Sturridge got more than a little greedy on a 70th minute break after getting fed in to the box by Coutinho. He drove towards goal from the left side and got held up, but instead of giving it back to Coutinho or crossing to Suarez on the other side of goal, he decided to go for his hat trick and went for glory, only to make a hash of it. Suarez and Coutinho were both visibly upset with him over it, and Rodgers brought him off shortly after in favor of Victor Moses (who looked smug as all get-out as he came on).
  
  
• Suarez nutmegs. Suarez nutmegs everywhere.
  
  
• It was nice seeing Luis Alberto get a little cameo, coming on for Coutinho and taking the #10 role for the last ten minutes of the match. He looked calm and clever with the ball, and man do I wish we could see more of him every now and then.
  
  
• I can't decide who the man of the match should be. Sturridge? Suarez? Gerrard? Coutinho? Mignolet? Hell, even Sterling deserves consideration, as while he wasn't involved in the goals, he was involved in pretty much every other good thing Liverpool did going forward. Too many options to choose from.
  
  
• Hearing You'll Never Walk Along ringing out from the Anfield faithful after a performance like this is just the best thing.

We'll be back shortly to take an in-depth look at everything that happened in today's game with the full recap. Until then, let us know your take on the ups and downs of the match in the comments, and if you haven't already, join the community on the Liverpool Offside, where we'll have full coverage and lively in-game discussion for every match this season.