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Van Dijk injury blow for Liverpool in Merseyside derby as Pickford avoids red card for wild lunge
The Everton goalkeeper crashed into the Dutch defender, leaving him crumpled on the turf, but the offside flag came to the rescue for the Toffees
Liverpool suffered an early injury blow in their Merseyside derby with Everton after seeing Virgil van Dijk forced off after just 11 minutes following a wild lunge from Jordan Pickford.
The Reds were already in front when the controversial incident occurred, with Sadio Mane breaking the deadlock with less than three minutes on the clock.
Jurgen Klopp’s side were looking for a second when their Dutch defender picked up an untimely knock.
Van Dijk sought to get onto the end of a ball that looped beyond the far post. Pickford raced out to meet the Liverpool centre-half and clattered into him, leaving him crumpled on the turf.
Everton’s goalkeeper, who has faced plenty of questions regarding his reliability over recent weeks, faced an anxious wait before discovering what the match officials had given.
An offside flag came to his rescue, with a VAR review deeming that the right call had been made. That got Pickford off the hook as he could have been facing at least a penalty, and potentially a red card.
Liverpool’s frustration at missing out on a spot kick was compounded when, after receiving treatment on the field, a talismanic part of their plans was forced off and straight down the tunnel.
It now remains to be seen how serious the problem picked up by Van Dijk is and how long he will be out of action for.
His absence was felt almost immediately by Liverpool, with Everton dragging themselves back into a lively contest in the 19th minute. With no Van Dijk around to organise at the back, Michael Keane headed home an equaliser.
Fabinho was unable to contain the threat posed by an England international, and he powered past Adrian to restore parity.
Liverpool knew they were going to face a response from their hosts after hitting the front so early in a keenly-contested fixture.
Mane’s goal, which saw him drill home Andy Robertson’s low cross from the left, made history for the men from Anfield. No player has ever been as quick out of the blocks on derby day for the Reds in the Premier League era.
Keeping opponents out has, however, been an issue for the defending champions in 2020-21 and another opportunity to collect a clean sheet has passed them by.
