Liverpool 3, Everton 1: First Thoughts

Liverpool 3 Mané 8’, Coutinho 30’, Klavan 60’ Everton 1 Pennington 25’

• PRE-MATCH: It’s derby day and Liverpool are without their captain and their best midfielder, but even so, they’ve ended up on the right side of the derby for the last several years, so hopefully that will happen again.
• The game opens with a bit of back and forth, with several players from both teams who are lucky not to be booked in the first few minutes. Welcome to the derby.
• GOAL! Mané 8’ - What a lovely solo goal from Mané, who weaves through the Everton defense and finds a hole, slotting the ball into the far corner.
• Everton have gotten into it a bit, creating some half-chances that have given me heart palpitations.
• Unfff - Can puts a perfect ball over the top for Coutinho to run onto. Coutinho controls it and cuts inside to get one of his patented, right-footed shots off, which is blocked.
• It’s 25’ when Tom Davies becomes the first player to go into the book, after a harsh challenge on Sadio Mané.
• Goal - Pennington 28’ - Liverpool concedes, as ever, off of a corner. Pennington only has to tap it in after some shaky defense.
• GOAL! Coutinho 30’ - After that warning shot earlier in the game, Coutinho gets a second chance with a little space in front of him in the 18 yard box, and this time he makes good use of it, giving Liverpool back the lead only moments after losing it.
• Third time’s the charm for Ross Barkley, who finally gets booked for stomping on the ankle of Dejan Lovren.
• HALFTIME: Everton are, frankly, lucky to still have 11 men on the pitch, but not lucky enough to be winning this game.
• Sadio Mané can’t continue after he twists his knee awkwardly, and Divock Origi comes in to replace him. Son of a...If we are without Lallana, Mané, and Henderson — that is going to be a problem going forward.
• Ross Barkley nearly scores a goal, and you can tell it didn’t quite go in because I haven’t burned the whole world down in a righteous rage.
• GOAL! Origi 60’ - Origi makes the perfect introduction off the bench. Coutinho’s happy feet get around the Everton defense, and he passes the ball off to young Origi, who hits a ROCKET straight into the back of the net. My goodness, this would be the game to do it in, wouldn’t it?
• Mignolet makes a desperate, off-balance stop when Holgate’s drive gets a deflection and a funny bounce that nearly gets it into the back of the net.
• Trent Alexander-Arnold comes in for Coutinho, who has a goal and an assist to his name, but who has also done a lot of traveling with Brazil over the last week. I think Klopp was always going to take him out after 70 minutes, though Mane’s injury likely changed the substitution from Origi to Alexander-Arnold.
• And as I write that, Alexander-Arnold nearly buries one into the back of the net. Not sure what I would have done if that went in, to be honest.
• Alexander-Arnold has another go at it 83 minutes in, and why not, son?
• FINAL: Liverpool won the game, but may have lost Mané. Coutinho had a great game and even got to come off to rest after 70 minutes. If the Little Magician is back in form, that will go a long way towards making up the deficit that Lallana and, potentially, Mané leave in the squad.

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.