Liverpool earn first Premier League win of 2023 and keep neighbours Everton in relegation zone

Liverpool, Great Britain With a 2-0 victory over Everton on Monday at Anfield, Cody Gakpo scored his first goal for Liverpool, giving Jurgen Klopp's squad their first Premier League victory of the season. In a heated match that finished with players fighting on the field after an intentional foul by Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford on Liverpool's Andy Robertson, Mohamed Salah's first-half goal put Liverpool on their path to victory. Liverpool's slim chances of finishing in the top four were improved by the victory, while Everton was left in the relegation zone going into their critical match against Leeds United on Saturday.

Rapid reaction

1. Everton stays in the relegation zone as Liverpool snaps its winless record.

Liverpool gained their first Premier League victory of 2023 and welcomed back a fit-again Diogo Jota for his first appearance since October as Klopp's squad heightened Everton's relegation concerns.Klopp and Sean Dyche's top priority right now is to figure out how to save their respective teams from having a horrible finish to the season after a disastrous start for both clubs. Finding the motivation to make a late push up the table to guarantee a top-four finish and Champions League qualifying is crucial for Liverpool. The primary objective for Everton and their freshly recruited manager, Dyche, is to avoid finishing in the bottom three and relegation. Both teams have a lot of work left to accomplish.Despite this victory, Liverpool currently trails fourth-place Newcastle United by nine points heading into their next match on Saturday at St. James' Park. A win would give Liverpool real chance of finishing in the top four since they have played one fewer game than Eddie Howe's squad. However, anything less than three points will make Klopp's team outsiders to secure a Champions League position. The situation is even worse for Everton, who after this loss remain in the bottom three. Leeds, who are one position and one point behind Dyche's squad in the standings, face at Goodison Park on Saturday after defeating league leaders Arsenal in his first game in charge earlier this month. While Everton's local community will be hurt by this loss,pride aside, Saturday's game is actually far more important. However, both Liverpool and Everton must perform better than they did in this encounter at Anfield if they are to rescue their respective seasons.

2. Nunez and Gakpo exhibit future potential.

Darwin and Gakpo Nunez and Sala have both had difficulty scoring goals since moving to Liverpool for significant sums of money this season, but they were crucial to Liverpool's victory over Everton. Nunez, who joined Liverpool in a club-record £75 million deal from Benfica with five goals in 16 league appearances, provided an assist for Salah's opening goal, while Gakpo eventually scored his first goal for Liverpool after joining in a £37 million trade from PSV Eindhoven last month. The two players, who are both 23 years old and still have their entire careers ahead of them, were acquired by Liverpool in order to ultimately replace Salah, Roberto Firmino, and Sadio Mane, who departed for Bayern Munich.München in the summer. Nunez and Gakpo's performances for Liverpool have shown that they are both still raw and inexperienced at the highest level, which is no secret. However, they are both also quite gifted, and the Liverpool supporters are being understanding of the duo while they stumble at Anfield. Gakpo is still learning to the demands of English football and Klopp's expectations of him inside the team structure, but Nunez never short for effort and can wreak havoc in opponent penalty areas, even if he misses too many opportunities. But this was a terrific night for Gakpo and Nunez, two of Liverpool's main future prospects, who both scored a goal.

3. Everton need a fit Calvert-Lewin – and soon

Everton entered this match with the lowest goal-scoring record in the Premier League this year, and they never seemed to be going above and beyond their pitiful total of 16 goals for the whole season. They haven't scored many goals this season because of the centre forward Dominic Calvert-injury Lewin's issues, but the English striker has only scored one goal in 11 outings. Demarai Gray and Anthony Gordon, who is now a player for Newcastle, are Everton's joint-leading scorers in the league with just three goals each, which tells everything about their predicament. In lieu of the injured Calvert-Lewin against Anfield, Dyche gave 22-year-old Ellis Simms his first season start, and he was successful.Against Liverpool defenders Joel Matip and Joe Gomez, he was totally out of his element.

Summer signing

Neal Maupay and Gray, who have combined for just one league goal all season, started this match on the bench as substitutes, but Dyche is in serious need of Calvert-Lewin to rediscover his form and health. Everton will struggle to get the goals they need to remain up if he stays in and out of the lineup like he has the whole season. Gordon's January transfer to Newcastle left Everton without a proven goal scorer to replace him; Calvert-Lewin is now their sole choice.