Everton may feel they pushed Liverpool right till the very end in the Merseyside Derby defeat.
David Moyes’ side returned across Stanley Park without anything to show for their visit to Anfield on Wednesday night.
The Toffees may even feel hard done by with the goal which ended up deciding the game.
Mark Clattenburg believes Luis Diaz was offside for Liverpool’s goal as he forced James Tarkowski into making a ball-playing action.
However, some will suggest it is all just swings and roundabouts as Tarkowski was fortunate to even be on the pitch at that point.
The referee and VAR decided not to send Tarkowski off as his challenge was reckless, not dangerous.
He was not the only defender somewhat out of sorts on Wednesday, with Paul Merson stunned by what happened to Virgil van Dijk.
Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images
Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images
What Everton’s Beto did to Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk
The chances were few and far between in the match, but Everton did have their opportunities to find the back of the net on Wednesday.
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Beto’s form has dipped in recent weeks, with the striker losing the rich vein of form he discovered under Moyes.
However, Paul Merson was stunned as he saw Beto force Van Dijk into an error, which then saw the striker hit the post.
“Oh my! I’ve never seen Van Dijk ever do that,” said Merson on Sky Sports as he reacted to Beto’s opportunity.
Everton fans were delighted to see Beto get the better of Van Dijk, but the striker will be frustrated not to have found the back of the net.
It was a huge moment in the game and Beto will have fancied himself given he has shown such composure in front of goal under Moyes.
Jamie Carragher reacted to Beto skinning Virgil van Dijk
Chris Sutton has hailed Beto recently, suggesting he’d be a £60m striker if he was playing at a better club.
The Portuguese striker has scored six goals this season, but it is now four Premier League games since he found the back of the net.
Merson was not the only Sky Sports pundit left stunned by what he saw between Beto and Van Dijk.
Jamie Carragher even suggested Beto was being made to look like Didier Drogba by the two Liverpool centre-backs.
“He’s caused Virgil van Dijk and especially Ibrahima Konate big problems,” he said.
“Liverpool’s two centre-backs have been excellent this season, but they’re making Beto look like prime Didier Drogba in this first half.”