Liverpool and Everton played out a fiercely contested Merseyside Derby at Anfield on Saturday.
Liverpool’s Georginio Wijnaldum
Reds midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum sat down for an exclusive interview with Sky Sports News, and blasted the Toffees for what he believes was an overly aggressive approach to the Merseyside Derby on Saturday from Ronald Koeman’s men.
Jürgen Klopp’s side eventually ran out comfortable 3-1 winners, but the game was marred by a collection of horror tackles, with Ross Barkley lucky not to receive a straight red card after his shocking lunge on Dejan Lovren.
And the Holland international took offence to the manner in which Everton went about their business at the weekend, telling Sky Sports how he believes the Blues crossed the line in the derby:
Everton’s Ross Barkley fouls Liverpool’s Dejan Lovren
“The tackles, especially those from the players from Everton made on our players, it was hard to see, hard to accept, because I think you can play the game really hard, but not with the intention to give someone an injury. For me, my opinion, that is a bad thing, because you have to play the game fair. Of course you can play hard, to win, but not to injure the player, because that’s not part of the game.”
In a rivalry that is already deeply embedded with ill feeling, Saturday’s game would have done little to abate the intense nature of future clashes between the two sides.
There is a lot to be said for keeping a cool head when those around you are losing theirs, and Everton quite clearly failed to do that as a team at Anfield at the weekend.
And Liverpool benefited from that, showcasing the kind of performance that Koeman’s men should learn from in the future.
Everton manager Ronald Koeman
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