The first Merseyside derby at Hill Dickinson Stadium takes place on Sunday when Everton welcome Liverpool to their new home.
And David Moyes’ side head into the game still firmly in the mix for European football. That is because they twice came from behind to claim a point against Brentford at the weekend.
While many of the nation might have been watching the Grand National, Beto and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall were scoring for Everton at the Gtech Community Stadium.
And with both the draw against the Bees and this weekend's derby in mind, our Everton jury have returned to have their say.
Sometimes a draw seems like a point gained; other times it feels like two points dropped. Last Saturday at Brentford it definitely felt like the former.
This was undoubtedly one of our toughest fixtures of the season, playing against a team who subject you to an aerial bombardment of corner-kicks, throw-ins and high crosses from the very first minute and battle for every second ball. I was so encouraged by the incredible resilience and determination shown by the side when lesser teams would have crumbled.
Despite going behind on two occasions, Everton showed an impressive resolve to come back twice to earn a well-deserved draw, which keeps our European ambitions alive.
It was good to see Beto score with a well-directed header after he had missed an easier chance to continue his recent goalscoring streak. We will need him to keep his scoring touch in our remaining games.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall had a golden opportunity to put us 2-1 ahead but failed to take it. Nevertheless, he kept going and struck home a stunning drive to level the game at 2-2 in stoppage time. He is arguably proving to be our most influential signing of the season, and Chelsea fans must be wondering why they let him go.
And who didn’t love his post on social media later which showed him ecstatically celebrating his goal, under a deluge of rain, with that defiant message, 'Don't count us out, see you on Sunday’. It is undoubtedly one of the defining images of the spirit Everton have shown this season.
I was pleased to see Tyrique George make an impact when he came on. His direct running and quick turn of pace played a major role in Everton dominating the final stages of the match. It gives David Moyes another option, and the winger could have a role to play in our remaining fixtures. If he does, then we should trigger that purchase option. George has grabbed his chance in a way that Tyler Dibling has failed to do.
We have the small matter of a contest against a team that was created to fill a vacant stadium in our city on Sunday. After their Champions League exit, we have the chance to add to their despondency.
I really do not like derby matches, but maybe we can go into this clash with an unusual degree of confidence? We have won our last two home matches; Sunday would be the perfect time to make it three in a row and move into one of the European qualification places. I hope those words do not come back to haunt me!
One thing is certain: this is the first-ever Merseyside derby at Hill Dickinson Stadium. Given the historic significance of this occasion, it is one that we simply cannot afford to lose. That would be unbearable. Hill Dickinson Stadium needs to mark its first-ever season with a derby win to celebrate, just like Goodison Park did in 1894!
Even if we didn’t get the win we wanted on Saturday, it was nice to finally have Everton back playing football again at last.
Brentford are evidently an effective team at what they do. They play extremely direct football, bombarding the opposition area with crosses and long balls, so it’s clear to see why they score goals. We absolutely rode our luck at times with attempts hitting the woodwork or relying on timely defensive blocks.
But a draw for us was just about deserved, and a last-minute equaliser was a good way to earn one. We were disappointing at the start of both halves, unfortunately, but responded in both cases with quality goals.
Defeat would have been a brutal hammer blow to any ambitions of finishing in the top seven. With wins elsewhere for Bournemouth, Brighton, and Sunderland, there are many teams chasing us down.
We saw an encouraging cameo from Tyrique George, but I highly doubt David Moyes will throw him in from the start against Liverpool. So looking towards that fixture, I have still yet to work out whether I’m nervous or excited for this one. They lost for the second time in midweek against Paris Saint-Germain but didn’t appear to have any issues in winning against Fulham at the weekend.
For us it’s a massive fixture. Lose, and I don’t think next year’s European tour is going to happen. The significance of this match as the first ever Merseyside derby at our new home cannot be understated. It is as important as that final evening against Liverpool at Goodison.
We are not going into the game as massive outsiders or underdogs, so let’s play our football like it. This is the smallest gap, in terms of team quality between the two sides, for years, and our opposition should be tired and demoralised. I’m apprehensive, as always, but I’m not scared going into Sunday. Come on, you Blues, let’s win all three points.
Connor O'Neill joined the ECHO's sports team in September 2020, having previously worked as a UK football writer for Belfast Live and on the Reach regional sports wire team. He has since worked as a content editor on the Central Sports Team and is now a Senior Sports Content Creator.
