Danny Murphy believes Liverpool will claim a vital Premier League win against Merseyside rivals Everton on Saturday – as long as Dominic Calvert-Lewin is unavailable, speaking to talkSPORT (17 February, 9am).
As Carlo Ancelotti himself said, an Everton side without their talismanic striker is a different beast – a far less dangerous one at that.
The Toffees flopped to a 2-0 home defeat to Fulham without Calvert-Lewin on Sunday, lacking anything remotely resembling a presence in the final third.
James Rodriguez is the only other player in Ancelotti’s squad with more than three Premier League goals to his name in 2020/21 so, with just 72 hours remaining until they travel to Anfield, DCL’s return to fitness can’t come soon enough.
Everton haven’t beaten their red-clad rivals in the league for 11 years and Murphy can’t see that dismal run coming to an end if Calvert-Lewin is forced to watch from the sidelines.
“(Liverpool’s) history against Everton is really good. They don’t tend to struggle too much against Everton,” says the former Anfield favourite.
“Of course, this is an Everton side with a bit more quality, a bit more belief. But I think if Liverpool play to the standards they have done over the last couple of weeks, they’ll beat them.
“Especially if Everton don’t have Calvert-Lewin back.”
Remarkably, reigning champions Liverpool have won only two of their last ten Premier League games.
But a superb 2-0 victory away at RB Leipzig last night, coupled with a fine first hour against Leicester, suggests a revival could be on the horizon.
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