Everton and Liverpool contest the first Premier League Merseyside derby at the former's new home on Sunday afternoon and the hosts will be confident they can build on recent home success against Burnley and Chelsea when they welcome their nemesis from across the city.
The Toffees return to base after a frenetic 2-2 draw with Brentford last weekend, a few days before the Reds exited the Champions League with a whimper. The Reds are clinging on to the fifth and final Champions League qualification spot but will need to pick themselves up after suffering their fourth defeat in five games against Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday.
Few Everton fans will ever forget the final Merseyside derby to be played at Goodison Park - thanks in equal measure to James Tarkowski's venomous volley and Arne Slot's post-match outburst - giving Sunday's Hill Dickinson christening a lot to live up to.
Everton's state-of-the-art stadium is one that deserves European nights, and the David Moyes-inspired Toffees are pushing to bring continental football back to the blue half of Merseyside as the hosts sit within touching distance of the top seven.
The hosts left it late to spoil the Brentford party last weekend, but late was better than never for Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, whose 91st-minute equaliser denied the Bees a precious three points against a direct rival for Europe.
Taking 10 points from the last 15 on offer in the top flight, Everton start the weekend just one point behind Chelsea in sixth place in the Premier League table, and one more triumph would also see the Toffees breach the 50-point barrier for the first time since the 2020-21 season under Carlo Ancelotti.
Having also bested Chelsea and Burnley in their last two home matches, Moyes's men could win three straight Premier League games at their new Hill Dickinson home for the first time ever, but Liverpool are also aiming for a slice of stadium history.
Having emerged victorious in at least one game at 59 Premier League grounds, Liverpool are bidding to become the first team to ever win at 60 different venues in the competition, but that will be easier said than done for the wounded champions.
Arne Slot's crop at least ended a three-match winless run in the top flight by overcoming Fulham 2-0 last weekend, when the fledgling Rio Ngumoha and veteran Mohamed Salah came good in front of goal, but the red bubble was quickly burst on Tuesday evening.
Liverpool were not blown to smithereens by reigning European champions Paris Saint-Germain, but Ousmane Dembele exhibited his Ballon d'Or credentials with a clinical second-half brace, sending the Reds packing via a 4-0 aggregate quarter-final defeat.
Out of Europe's premier tournament and losing four of their last five games in all competitions paints a bleak picture for Liverpool, but the Reds are still in control of their Champions League destiny, thanks to their healthy four-point gap over Chelsea in fifth position.
However, the holders head to Hill Dickinson riding a miserable four-game losing run away from home across all tournaments, and September's narrow 2-1 Anfield success over Everton is unlikely to inspire much confidence in the #SlotIn or #SlotOut brigade.
Team News
Blessed with a near fully-fit squad at this stage of the season, Everton are only missing Jack Grealish (foot) for the Merseyside derby following Carlos Alcaraz's return from an unspecified problem.
A healthy crop of players would normally mean the best kind of selection dilemmas for Moyes, but the hosting manager has settled on an established starting XI and should see no need to make any alterations here.
Beto's header against Brentford was the striker's fifth goal contribution from his last four games in the top flight, and the in-form Guinea-Bissau international has no doubt done enough to keep Thierno Barry at bay.
From fit centre-forwards to stricken strikers, Liverpool suffered their most devastating blow of the season yet on Tuesday, losing top scorer Hugo Ekitike to an Achilles rupture that could sideline the Frenchman for the remainder of the calendar year.
Ekitike joins Alisson Becker (unspecified), Giovanni Leoni (knee), Conor Bradley (knee) and Wataru Endo (ankle) in the infirmary, where the quintet are also joined by Joe Gomez due to a bout of discomfort.
While Alexander Isak is a surefire starter in Ekitike's place, Slot has conceded that the Swede is not yet ready for the full 90 minutes after his recent leg fracture, so expect either Cody Gakpo or Mohamed Salah to function as a number nine in the latter stages of the derby.
Key stats for Everton vs Liverpool
Liverpool have lost four of their last five matches
Both teams have scored in four of the Reds' last five Premier League games
Six of the last eight derbies at Everton have been draws
Four of Everton's last six home games have featured fewer than three goals
Under 2.5 goals has been a winning bet in seven of the last ten derbies
Predicted Line-up
Everton
Pickford; O'Brien, Tarkowski, Branthwaite, Mykolenko; Gueye, Garner; McNeil, Dewsbury-Hall, Ndiaye; Beto.
Subs: Alcaraz, Patterson, Keane, Barry, George, Iroegbunam, Dibling.
Liverpool
Mamardashvili; Szoboszlai, Van Dijk, Konate, Kerkez; Gravenberch, Jones; Salah, Wirtz, Ngumoha; Isak.
Subs: Chiesa, Gakpo, Robertson, Mac Allister, Frimpong, Nyoni, Nallo.
