Danny Murphy has praised Trent Alexander-Arnold after winning his ‘battle’ against Dwight McNeil. The Liverpool star impressed against the Everton ace during the Merseyside derby.
Liverpool beat Everton 2-0 at Anfield on Monday through goals in either half by Mohamed Salah and Cody Gakpo. The result lifts the Reds up to ninth in the Premier League table and leaves the Toffees in 18th place. Sean Dyche’s squad are one point behind Leeds for safety.
Beating Everton in the Merseyside derby also returned Liverpool’s first win in the top-flight in 2023. Salah (36’) punished Jordan Pickford’s poor positioning to take a lead only seconds after James Tarkowski hit the post. Alexander-Arnold later fed Gakpo (49’) to make it two.
Alexander-Arnold crossed into Gakpo at the far post to secure Liverpool the win as Everton let the 24-year-old push up. His delivery capped the 18-cap England international’s display on his 21st appearance of the term. The right-back has played 29 times in all competitions.
While at the other end, Alexander-Arnold prevented McNeil from causing Liverpool many issues with Everton. The 23-year-old struggled to find a connection with Dyche’s attackers at Anfield. He also left the action on 77 minutes to make way for Neal Maupay to come on.
Murphy praises Liverpool’s Alexander-Arnold for besting Everton’s McNeil
Dyche handed McNeil his 20th appearance of the Premier League campaign as Everton lost at Liverpool. The winger had registered just his second assist of the term to see the Toffees beat Arsenal 1-0 last time out. He has also scored twice since joining Everton from Burnley.
Frank Lampard paid the Clarets £20m plus add-ons to sign the Rochdale native in July. But the former England U21 gem has only started in 12 of his 20 top-flight outings so far. Now, Murphy praises Alexander-Arnold for shutting down the Everton ace as Liverpool won 2-0.
Murphy told talkSPORT (13/2, 21:32): “He’s done well, Trent. He’s won the battle against McNeil. He’s defended really well the majority of the time.”
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