Yet another derby draw

All square at the end then and a draw definitely the right result. Neither team did enough to win it and it was one of the poorest, if not the poorest, Merseyside derby I can remember. Nobody should be surprised by the result either. That's the fifth draw in the last six Merseyside derbies!

Derby day and it's difficult to explain your tormented feelings as you go through your pre-match procedure. A touch of excitement but that knot of dread in your stomach as you hope for delirium though know that, at the end of the day, you might just want to get home quick and not see anyone for the rest of the night... the week even. Welcome to derby day hell.

The evening kick-off allowed more time for a leisurely day at least and so I caught up with a few chums in The Excelsior in Liverpool city centre for some food and drinks whilst watching the North London derby. Harry Kane, by the way... what a player he is turning out to be – he's doing all the things Lukaku ought to be doing. Ste then joined us in The Vernon Arms for a few more ales before we boarded the train over to Kirkdale.

We still had a little time to kill and nipped into The Albany for a quick pint before we ventured onto Goodison Park. The old lady was rocking from kick off as a huge roar met the teams as they took to the field, though this turned to a few boos when Steven Gerrard arrived... for the last time in a Liverpool shirt thankfully. Leighton Baines was the surprise omission from the team which beat Crystal Palace, the England left back out with a knee injury so Bryan Oviedo deputised. James McCarthy made a very welcome return to the midfield, replacing his Ireland teammate Aiden McGeady (also injured). Deadline day loanee Aaron Lennon made the substitutes bench, as did Daniel Sturridge for Liverpool. Mario Balotelli not even amongst the substitutes.

Everton didn't really settle at all in the first half and really needed to get on the ball a lot more and do more with it. We didn't have enough productivity in possession and Liverpool were definitely the more dominant team in the first half, albeit without creating much. A moment of indecision from Joel Robles almost allowed Raheem Sterling in but he seemed caught in two minds with what to do and ended up putting the ball well wide with an apology of a shot.

Steven Gerrard lined up a free kick and you pretty much knew he was going to score though Robles tipped it over comfortably. The surprise in Liverpool's line-up was the inclusion of Jordan Ibe down Liverpool's right wing and he did ever so well, coming very close to scoring with an audacious drive from distance which thankfully cannoned away off the post. Some goal that would have been. At the other end? Well I'm struggling really... There was one moment when the ball fell invitingly to Naismith though he couldn't control it with his head and the chance went. Still, at the break we were satisfied to be all square. We hadn't offered much and felt we could certainly improve in the second half.

The second half carried on with more of the same – Liverpool on top though not creating an awful lot. Central to almost everything they did was the excellent Phillippe Coutinho. I was therefore surprised, and pretty relieved, to see him substituted to accommodate Daniel Sturridge. It still took Everton a while to force Liverpool onto the back foot but, following the substitution, Liverpool's attacking flair was practically non-existent. For about 20 minutes in the second half, though highly intense, there was precious little to get excited about.

We did finally make a break for it, it was supposed to be a football game after all, and the introduction of Ross Barkley almost won us the points. He picked out Seamus Coleman with an exquisite reverse pass though the Irishman's drive was well saved by Simon Mignolet. What a chance and I'd certainly have made no apologies to any of my Red mates for grabbing a fortunate derby win for a change. It's funny what a bit of pressure can do. Despite being the more positive team in the game, Liverpool were wasting time in the dying minutes.

All square at the end then and a draw definitely the right result. Neither team did enough to win it and it was one of the poorest, if not the poorest, Merseyside derby I can remember. Nobody should be surprised by the result either. That's the fifth draw in the last six Merseyside derbies!

Still there's plenty of positives. Three clean sheets in a row; another fine performance at the back from John Stones; Joel Robles looks fine; James McCarthy returned; Mohammed Besic looks like he can become quite a focal player for us for a good few years; Aaron Lennon looks like he'll create some chances for us; Oviedo coped fine; Coleman played his best for a while; and, perhaps most significantly of all, Ross Barkley (albeit in only eight minutes) looks to have his confidence back. I'm no longer worried about relegation and can look forward to us hopefully having a good crack at the Europa League now – at least the season is still alive.

Oh and just an aside: is there a more overrated player in the league than Jordan Henderson, or "Jordinho" or even "Hendo" as the Reds adoringly title him? OK, he can put a few tackles in, though can't really pass, can't shoot, and creates minimal assists. You're never really worried when he has the ball. Not a patch on McCarthy for me. With Steven Gerrard on his way out (loved the crowd reaction to his exit by the way) is he really to be their new leader, captain and midfield hard man?

Then happy days!

Player Ratings:

Robles: A bit of hesitation early on aside, he did fine, albeit without really being tested. Anything he had to save was pretty much straight at him. Did well to swoop on the ball ahead of Ibe first half. Have to say I'm pretty confident in him. I don't think I'd be rushing Tim Howard back at his expense upon his imminent return. 7

Oviedo: Did fine defensively though didn't look comfortable on the ball in the first half. He improved in the second and put in some pretty good deliveries from set pieces. An able replacement for Baines. 7

Stones: His reading and composure on the ball really is top draw. We seemed to have found a decent defensive partnership at last. I think playing alongside Jagielka really helps his game. I'd be delighted if we make that four clean sheets in a row at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night. 7

Jagielka: Also very good defensively. Not a lot got past the pair of them. 7

Coleman: I liked that he often took responsibility in the game and tried to take the game to Liverpool more than most. He was so close to becoming the derby hero at the end. My Man of the Match. 7

Barry: Gave away possession countless times. As Besic is still learning in the Premier League, I would keep Barry in the team quite regularly for what's left of the season as I feel he does a good job for the team. However, next season, I really like the idea of a Besic and McCarthy midfield two as I feel they could compliment each other pretty well. Anyhow, a good job for the team Barry may generally do, that he did not yesterday evening. The game seemed to pass him by. He is yet to have a good derby for us, probably never will. Somehow survived the game without getting booked so is available for Wednesday. Whether he should play or not is another matter... 4

McCarthy: Great to have him back. His drive and desire makes such a difference for us and I think we would be bare minimum six points better off (and then 10th and looking up rather than down) had he not have succumbed to injury. Hopefully that's his hamstring worries behind him. 7

Besic: Did fine in there. I like that he's not afraid to stick his boot in and offers flair also. I fancy him to really impress next season. 6

Mirallas: Very forgettable performance. Didn't look interested and hardly got involved at all. I think his head is elsewhere. He needs to get his act together and fast for the remainder of the season before he leaves. If we can gain a bit of momentum in the Europa League, I think that might invigorate him. 5

Naismith: Great effort and endeavor but he was woeful at times yesterday. I'd be tempted to field Barkley instead at Stamford Bridge but then you lose Naismith's work rate. Tough call. 5

Lukaku: Was offside way too often though I felt he was very isolated up there and really didn't have much to work with. Effort was there though. I fancy him to make an impact this season yet. 6

Lennon (for Mirallas): Good. Got involved and comfortable on the ball. Coleman should benefit from him being in the team massively. I'm looking forward to seeing what he can do for the rest of the season. 7

Barkley (for Naismith): To be fair to Martinez, it was really important not to lose this one so I can see why he kept it as it was for so long; however, I can't help but feel that, had Barkley have been introduced earlier, we would have created more opportunities. Having said that – it nearly worked. Good to see him playing positively. Hopefully he's got that mojo back and can make a difference in the remainder of the season. 7

Alcaraz (for Besic): I couldn't believe it when I saw Roberto wave Alcaraz over as he was warming up. He settled into the back OK as we shored things up. Brought on to negate the "threat" of Ricky Lambert, I suppose. 6

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