Dirk Kuyt scored Liverpool’s two goals this lunchtime from the penalty spot to allow the Red half of the city to enjoy their nights out tonight. It takes enormous courage to take a penalty in any big game, but Dirk had to take two, including the one in stoppage time that turned out to be the winner. He was unbelievably cool about it.
After the game he was asked by BBC Sport what it felt like: “It’s an unbelievable feeling and the more special thing was after you score the goals, that’s the important thing. If you’re playing in Goodison Park, the supporters were all against you – you just have to focus yourself on the ball and just score. That’s all you have to do.
“Sounds easy but it was a bit difficult today.”
Dirk Kuyt was smiling for the BBC, but David Moyes was devastated. Two of his players had been sent off, one for a clear professional foul and one for deliberately saving what would have been a certain Lucas goal with his hands. His own team were refused a penalty appeal in the last seconds of the game, when Joleon Lescott appeared to crumble to the ground under very little pressure from Jamie Carragher. Moyes said: “You just need to look at the decisions. Totally gone against us today.”
Heading for a possible disrepute charge, Moyes continued: “I have to question if you can referee if you don’t see the incident in injury time on Joey Lescott.
“I’d have to say that.
“Decisions are difficult for referees but that one wasn’t a difficult decision, it was a simple decision and it wasn’t given.”
Liverpool briefly went third after the win, but were fourth by the end of the 3.00 kick-offs with Manchester City going back into third. Everton dropped into tenth place.
2 Clear penalties for fouls against Lescott by both Carragher and Finnan.
Liverpool were poor but the ref was a Disgrace today.
Everton deserved to win and you know it.
p.s – What’s up with Benetez and his Strange Substitutions etc. ?
Darren, what about the clear cut chances that fell to liverpool in the second half, everton provided nothing except for set pieces. You say they deserve to win, i say the score line reflected the better play. If anything lescott was backing into carra and finnan first, so he committed the first fouls. And you wonder why your known as the bitters!
Funny how all the bitter blues forget about the Kuyt ‘offside’ goal…
I am a life-long Liverpool fan and I dont think Liverpool deserve to win the game. It was pure luck. I have to admit. Liverpool were poor even against 10 man. What’s more, 3 players were extremely awful and still stayed on the pitch for most of the game. 3 of them were, Hyppia, Momo Sissoko and Mascherano. They lost most of the ball and their passing were awful. The gaffer responded to this poor game by taking out good players like Benayoun and Gerrard. Absolute madness. He’s lucky Leiva did performed well. For the 1st time, I have my sympathy for Everton. They deserved at least a draw if not a win. As for Benitez, he must wake up. When can he ever be like Arsene Wenger? I want to see Liverpool pass better, finish off moves and play real football.
Lescott is a diving disgrace, realising his team were gona lose he dived under very little pressure form jamie and like said, he was backing into both of them. Hibbrt was the last man and therefore deserved red, and phil neville was shown by the cheating scum bag he is for trying to get away with that. That is why he is perfect to be your captain/vice captain. You lost DEAL WITH IT. Look at the stats on skysports. Liverpool had more chances and had 62% posesion to evertons 38% and YOU WERE AT HOME. Effing bitters!!!
Liverpool were poor I grant you but in all honesty how many saves did Reina have to make, I dont remember one
Its all very well complaining about the decisions but Everton created nothing all game, sorry you didn’t deserve anything
Sorry mate, I didn’t watch it on sky sports, I happened to be at the game. I can’t understand how Liverpool have managed to try and turn it round to everybody being against them. Just because FAt Rafa the Spanish waiter believes something different to the rest of the football watching population, everybody has it in for him and his team. Surely, even as a Liverpool fan, you have to think that he is losing his mind, maybe a little under pressure to win more after spending so much money. Substituting Gerrard? Leaving Sissoko on the pitch after he was god awful, was this a show to Gerrard of, I’m boss, like it or Lump it…… I have a feeling it was. Would ANY team want a manager who actually belives that what you don’t want in a local Derby is passion. I know for a fact I don’t. You clearly watch too much tv and listen to people without forming your own opinions, nobody, except Rafa of course, could come to the rational opinion that it was NOT a foul on Lescott, not a sane person anyway. Maybe you should look a little closer to home. Is it the first time Gerrard has gone down under no pressure in the penalty area? Cast your mind back to Sheff Utd, 1-0 down, he bursts into the box and performed simulation, so bad infact that while speaking to a RS mate, he said he felt embarrased and ashamed of what Gerrard did, something he has infact repeated about Kuyt. So, before calling us bitter, maybe take stock of what you believe. I mean, there has to be a reason you are despised by fans all over the globe, and it’s certainly not jealousy. If you’re not sure, ask an Italian.
If you’re not sure, ask an Italian.
You weren’t doing too bad until then Chris. Then it all went wrong.
I know not all Blues are bitter – I actually spoke to one yesterday who’d taken his son to his first derby and accepted that refereeing decisions don’t always go your way, and that overall Liverpool deserved to win.
I saw Everton make a lot of what looked like attempts to con the ref in the game, even more when watching it back. Do that enough and you won’t get the benefit of the doubt.
Everton’s reputation for bringing up incidents from every derby is why you’re given the tag of “bitter”. Not all fans do it, but most seem to.
And those who wheel out the “murderers” comment are the bitterest of all. I guess that’s what you were hinting at?
To be honest, thats not what I was hinting at directly, sorry, should of been more direct. I was actually going back to the incident when they all turned their backs on you to show how much they no longer respect you. Thats nothing to do with jealousy. Anyhoo, I have watched the game on numerous occasions, and while I can see one or two occasions where an everton player has perhaps gone down a little too easily, there is one which sticks in my mind, if Kuyt had of put in a challenge such as that on the likes of Diof, Ronaldo, Gerrard, then I can pretty much guarantee that he would of walked. It was the honesty of neville that was, sadly, the worst thing, ANY of the other players mentioned above would of hit the deck like a sack of spuds and feigned injury, in an attempt to get the offender sent off, no matter how small the contact, if any. Now, the strange thing is, I fully accept the result, we got beat, the referee’s performance was not the best, to put it lightly, but, what really gives me heart, is that, for a team that you should be leaving in your wake this year after all that has been spent, for the belief that Max has in his head as to how good you are…….At the end of the match, you had beaten a team, with 9 men, with the help of a decision in the final seconds which was very VERY fortuitous for you not to concede a penalty, the national media in agreement that you had cheated your way there….. 2-1, both penalties.
Hardly premiership form is it?
Can I just add aswell, maybe in a slight show of what I believe is missing from all Merseyside derby’s, that there was something which I took great heart in seeing in the papers, A group of affable RS sat in the Everton end, in their shirts laughing and joking with the Bluenoses around them. More of that please .The Merseyside derby used to be a day to celebrate all that is great in Merseyside, blues and reds drinking side by side, before AND after the game. It was always packed with full blooded, passionate players who would put in strong challenges, but would rarely be dishonest, the game would be played in the true spirit, it’s a shame to see that it has changed over recent years, for whatever reason. Maybe it was slightly better this year, due to the united front that all in Merseyside have shown due to certain tradgedies such as Rhys Jones. Lets not forget our roots, the roots of both clubs. It’s great to win a derby, I’d love to do it more often, bastards, but not at all costs.
Hi Chris. I agree with the idea that it would be nice if we could get back to the less confrontational days, remembering we’re all from the same city. (Ignores the chance to get a ground move dig in at that point).
Phil Neville didn’t dive, as you say, when Kuyt went at him. There’s no doubt Kuyt intended to block the ball, not get the player, but if he’d gone off for that then he’d have had no real grounds for complaint. But what Neville did at the end is as much cheating as anything I’ve seen in the game. He went off for it, but he knew that he was giving you lot a lifeline. And I believe he only gets a one game ban for it. If Howard had saved the pen then he’d have got you a point by cheating.
That said, it’s a different kind of cheating – almost “honest cheating” – to what the likes of some players do. And I’m sure most of us would have done the same in that situation. It was a good save!
Here’s to more friendly rivalries in the future, I’m glad the Tesco bags were taken in good humour.