Here is a little antidote from the Merseyside Derby... I provided the link but it may be behind a paywall for some, so I've tried to also drop in the full article text 🙉🙈🙊
theathletic.com/2401485/2021/02/21/evertons-anfield-win-1am-hotel-alarm-and-the-player-who-slept-in-his-shirt/?source=dailyemailEverton’s Anfield win: 1am hotel alarm and the player who slept in his shirt
Everton’s players had a rude awakening on Saturday. It came courtesy of an errant 1am alarm at the dockland hotel where they spent Friday night, shattering their sleep ahead of a huge game. Some members of the squad believe the alarm was no accident, suspecting a deliberate bid to unsettle them by a mischievous Liverpool fan. But in the end, Carlo Ancelotti and his players went back to bed, woke up and ensured it was their rivals who had a sleepless night 24 hours later. By 7.30pm, Everton were celebrating a historic Merseyside derby win at Anfield, their first across the park since 1999.
The Athletic can reveal the inside story of a triumph 22 years in the making; how it came about and how those responsible celebrated what is widely viewed inside Goodison as an important psychological landmark. Ancelotti allowed himself a broad grin after the final whistle. He embraced his backroom staff. But he was not getting too carried away. “He was happy and excited,” a source close to the Italian told The Athletic. “Carlo thinks that it was a gift for every Evertonian.” But after briefly joining in with the celebrations in the away dressing room at Anfield, he left and returned to his Crosby home where he had a quiet evening with family. A manager who has won Champions Leagues and major derbies in Milan, Madrid, Munich and London was always less likely to get too carried away, even though he was fully aware of the significance of his team beating their rivals, no matter how injury-ravaged and bereft of their powerful home support.
Ancelotti may have spoken of being wary not to underestimate “the lion” in terms of Jurgen Klopp’s team on Friday, but he was a man with a plan — and he was quietly confident in it. The former Real Madrid manager surprised many, including Klopp, when striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin and midfielder Allan were left on the bench after saying both were fit and available during press conference duties on Friday. The German mentioned his rival’s “poker face” when told on air before kick-off about Everton’s team. If that piece of team-news chicanery, an old classic from the elite managerial playbook, genuinely did give the visitors a fine-margin advantage, so too did the calm and confident mood Ancelotti built at Finch Farm throughout the week. Midfielder Abdoulaye Doucoure admitted to French media afterwards that the manager had told his players in the dressing room beforehand they were going to win. It helped, too, that he was addressing a group of players with few scars from past Anfield setbacks.
“We’re starting to get a bunch of players in the dressing room who maybe aren’t carrying the baggage of having all those hard defeats over the years and that showed; Richy with the goal and James with the ball,” said captain Seamus Coleman afterwards. “Then you look to the touchline and we’ve got a world-class manager so that gives you belief.” Tactically Ancelotti did what he intimated he would. He respected Liverpool’s strengths, aware they were buoyant after an impressive 2-0 win over RB Leipzig in the Champions League last Tuesday, with a defensive shape and outlook, which would, when the team news arrived, seem to play into the narrative of Everton fearing Liverpool but, in fact, just ensured they got the job done. Everton’s shape was effective, notionally, 3-5-1-1 with Rodriguez in a free role just off Richarlison. At times, Coleman and Lucas Digne dropped in to make it a back five. On other occasions, when the ball was wide, Coleman pressed Andy Robertson making it more of a four in midfield.
When it was further infield, the Republic of Ireland skipper dropped in to make it a five at the back. Coleman revealed afterwards he was essentially tasked with man-marking Robertson, who has hurt Everton in recent derbies and created Liverpool’s first goal in the 2-2 draw at Goodison Park. “Credit to the manager, he put Coleman where he’s played Rodriguez before and let Rodriguez float around behind Richarlison,” one source close to the team told The Athletic. “It worked because it stopped Liverpool from creating two-on-one overloads. Seamus did his job and Rodriguez did his with that assist.” Mason Holgate was handed a similar job to Coleman in dealing with Sadio Mane. Meanwhile, Andre Gomes and Doucoure were either side of, and slightly higher than, Tom Davies. Those two could push to win the ball but Davies, who had another excellent game, had to be more disciplined in his positioning, frequently mopping up in front of the defence. The graphic below shows all of Davies’ actions, including passes, touches, interceptions and tackles, during the game. Notice the glut in front of his defence.
That rearguard was, once again, adeptly marshalled by Michael Keane, who was central of three defenders in a sweeper-style role and contributed 13 clearances. In midfield, Ancelotti is understood to have emphasised the need for aggression while waiting for the right time to hit back at an under strength Liverpool defence, even before the withdrawal through injury of Jordan Henderson. Thanks to that defensive platform, Everton were able to hold on to the early lead they took thanks to Richarlison’s clinical finish after darting ahead of Liverpool new-boy Ozan Kabak. A couple of weeks ago, the Brazil international had been made aware internally that more was expected of him. With four goals in four games since he started leading the line, including scoring against Spurs, Manchester City and Liverpool, he appears to be thriving on being handed that responsibility against big teams.
For all the intensity of a Merseyside derby, it was about controlled aggression too. Only Gomes was booked for Everton. Tempers did threaten to bubble over on the touchline, though, when assistant manager Duncan Ferguson exchanged sharp words with Klopp, who had been irate that his side had not been awarded a penalty for what later appeared to be an innocuous incident when Mohamed Salah went to ground. The victory felt particularly meaningful for goalkeeper Jordan Pickford. Subjected to intense and enduring scrutiny after his bad challenge on Virgil van Dijk at Goodison in October left the Liverpool defender out for the season, he even received death threats and was forced to step up security around his young family.
There had been speculation over whether Ancelotti would start the 26-year-old on Saturday, given the furore around the first derby of the season, but those close to the England goalkeeper insist his stoic mentality played a part in a commanding display. Pickford didn’t prepare any differently for the game, maintaining his usual routines. He is believed to have simply focused on blocking out the noise around the Van Dijk incident, which he has long accepted was a bad error albeit without malice. He has been buoyed by Ancelotti’s consistent public shows of support under questioning and, in a season when most players have suffered fatigue, there is a feeling that he has been helped by the addition of Robin Olsen as a rotation option.
On a tough evening for goalkeepers and defenders alike because of high winds, it was those in blue who weathered it best. At full time, a jubilant Ferguson rushed on to the pitch to embrace Davies, Calvert-Lewin and Holgate. The Scot was a supporter before being hired as a coach by the club he fell in love with during his playing days, and was all too aware of the Anfield curse. The same goes for locals on the backroom staff such as kit man Jimmy Martin and masseur Jimmy Comer. “As you can imagine it wasn’t just the players,” said Coleman afterwards when quizzed about the celebratory mood. “There are staff members who’ve been here a long time who bleed blue and it’s for them as well, this result.”
Those celebrations continued in the away dressing room, shared on social media by young left-back Niels Nkounkou. As players jumped around and embraced, it was a euphoric chaos but privately some at the club told The Athletic they would prefer it if such scenes stayed behind closed doors and worry it sends out the wrong message for a side that is chasing more long-term goals. Coleman too emphasised that nobody should be getting too carried away. “We want Europe,” he said, underlining the club’s goal as they moved level on 40 points with Liverpool. “We want to be successful in our own right. It’s not about finishing above Liverpool. “The mindset has to change — not to be competing with Liverpool but to be successful in our own right. It’s about us — I keep saying it and I know it’s boring and I’m sure the lads are fed-up of hearing it but on a day-to-day basis we have to be professional and keep doing the right thing and hopefully success can come to the football club. We can’t turn it on and off like we have in the last three or four weeks.” If he was trying to, as ever, remain level-headed, Coleman would still allow himself to celebrate in the dressing room too. The Athletic understands some of the younger players remained on a high the following day. Holgate, it is believed, was still wearing his matchday shirt the next morning and Ben Godfrey told friends he enjoyed watching Match of the Day at his new home in Cheshire, although wished he could have been able to enjoy a meal with his family. The summer signing from Norwich City is understood to have particularly used the 1am alarm as motivation, along with his last trip to Anfield; a chastening 4-1 defeat on the opening day of last season with the Canaries.
“Ben has settled in brilliantly,” says a source close to the impressive defender. “He feels part of it at Everton and he was buzzing by what happened with the alarm because it brought home to him what it all means. He said he couldn’t wait to go back there with better players after the Norwich game last season and get revenge. He’s a tough boy — look at his challenge on Shaqiri. There’s not much that bothers him really and he loves the intensity and the physical challenge.” By the end of a historic evening across Stanley Park, Everton had earned their bragging rights. Under Ancelotti’s careful guidance and with fresh, hungry players without too much baggage, they had been ready. Despite that early hours alarm, nobody sleepwalked into the lion’s den.
