Jürgen Klopp hailed the impact of substitute Daniel Sturridge after his introduction set up Sadio Mané’s 94th-minute winner as Liverpool moved into second place in the Premier League.
Sturridge returned after an absence of five matches with a calf problem with a late cameo and struck the post with a shot that allowed Senegal striker Mané to pounce on the rebound and settle the 227th Merseyside derby in Liverpool’s favour.
Klopp has become the first Liverpool manager to win his first two derby matches and pointed to the importance of Sturridge, who only returned to training at the end of last week, in the last-gasp success.
“Tomorrow is our Christmas party and this is the first party we have had after a winJürgen Klopp
“You have Daniel and you’re always thinking, ‘When is the right time, is he ready for this?’ ” said Klopp. “Because it is not normal that after two sessions a player can really help you, but he helped us a lot. In a very difficult game, he could make the difference.
“This is not being disrepectful, but it was a hard game, a tough game, and it was really important that we bring on fresh legs after 80 minutes.
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“The plan of Everton was wild football. They were chasing us everywhere. It is really difficult to play against this. We couldn’t handle it at first. We will be better at reacting against this in a few months. We were much better in the second half, we could have scored earlier but actually I don’t care.
“We needed someone who could shoot and Sturridge did that. If you only win games when you are brilliant you won’t win many games. It was a battle and we were ready for it.
“Tomorrow is our Christmas party and this is the first party we have had after a win.”
Mané will join up with Senegal for the Africa Cup of Nations after Liverpool’s trip to Sunderland on January 2 and the return of Sturridge could hardly be better timed as Klopp’s side look to keep pace with Chelsea.
Philippe Coutinho is also ready to step up his training this week after ankle ligament damage as he targets the New Year’s Eve showdown with Manchester City.
“I know Ross well — he’s a good lad and he mistimed the tackleJordan Henderson
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Liverpool narrowed the gap to leaders Chelsea to six points after an encounter, which came to life after the interval and in which Everton midfielder Ross Barkley was fortunate not to be red-carded for a poor challenge on Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson.
Everton manager Ronald Koeman, who lost James McCarthy and goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg to injury, admitted that Barkley could have been sent off by referee Mike Dean.
But Koeman argued Liverpool defender Dejan Lovren should also have been dismissed for the mêlée that followed having earlier been cautioned for a challenge on Romelu Lukaku.
“It was a tough tackle by Ross,” said Koeman, whose first Merseyside derby left Everton with only one victory in the past 20 meetings between the sides. “I need to watch the clip back, maybe it’s a red, I don’t know, but what happened after is not a fair decision from the referee.
“It is also a total reaction of several players, maybe [Seamus] Coleman but it was started by Lovren, who had already a yellow.
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“He gave Coleman his yellow, but not Lovren. If you are fair then you give a yellow to Lovren too and that’s a red.”
Liverpool captain Henderson revealed that Barkley had apologised to him for the tackle after the final whistle.
“It was pretty late. I know Ross well — he’s a good lad and he mistimed the tackle. He apologised after the match,” Henderson said.
Man in the Middle
Howard Webb (BT Sport pundit and former World Cup referee)
Ross Barkley should have been sent off (he was given only a yellow card) for his challenge on Jordan Henderson. He used excessive force, endangering the safety of the Liverpool captain. There was contact, with his studs on the calf above the boot, and the tackle was made with speed and intensity. It ticked all the boxes for serious foul play. Mike Dean (who was otherwise excellent) needed help from his colleagues, who were much better-placed than him to see the incident. It was hard from his angle to pick it up.
