Liverpool laughed first, last and loudest on Sunday, as the Reds wrote the first chapter of the Merseyside derby at the brand new Hill Dickinson Stadium with a 100th-minute winning goal from Virgil van Dijk to beat Everton 2-1.
Mohamed Salah got things started for Liverpool when he scored the opening goal, in his final Merseyside derby, just moments after Iliman Ndiaye’s goal was ruled out for offside by video review.
Jake O’Brien found Ndiyae with a cross to the penalty spot, but O’Brien was well offside when the ball in behind Liverpool’s defence was played to him on the right wing.
Seconds later, Cody Gakpo threaded an inch-perfect pass through midfield and found Salah all be his lonesome on the opposite flank.
Salah made no mistake with the finish and etched his name in derby history.
Beto pulled Everton level in the 54th minute, though, as Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall crossed the ball into the six-yard box and Beto slid in to touch it past Giorgi Mamardashvili.
1-1 looked like the likeliest outcome for ages, but the board went up indicating 11 minutes of stoppage time and one final twist seemed inevitable.
Dominik Szoboszlai had a go from outside the box 10 minutes into stoppage time, blocked and deflected for a corner kick.
Szoboszlai hooked a lofted ball to the top of the six and Van Dijk thumped it past Jordan Pickford who was perhaps impeded by O’Brien amid a sea of bodies. [NBC]
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