Positives to take from derby for Liverpool, despite draw

In the end honours were even in the Merseyside derby as Liverpool and Everton drew 2-2 at Anfield.

It wasn’t your typical Merseyside derby as the game was more open affair than usual. It made for a fascinating end to end game.

Both sides should take credit for trying to win the game and for the neutral it must have been a fantastic watch.

However as an Everton fan my nerves were jangling throughout, as usual for a Merseyside derby.

Positives

This might seem strange but I would like to look at the positives that Liverpool and boss Kenny Dalglish should take from the game. On his return to the Anfield dugout after a 20 year absence his team were brighter than in previous games.

Heart

Kenny Dalglish’s return to Liverpool seems to have given everybody at the club the lift they needed. He is of course a club legend and the fans seem to have a new spring in their step since his appointment.

The players have reacted to his appointment as well and seem to be working harder for the Scot. Former-boss Roy Hodgson must be wondering why they couldn’t work this hard for him. That extra effort will be important in the coming months as the club try to climb the Premier League table.

Half

Liverpool had the better of the first half and probably should have gone in at half-time with a bigger lead. They looked the more dangerous up front and it looked like they could go on to control the game in the second half.

However like against Blackpool in midweek Liverpool came out and made a sluggish start to the second half and Everton punished them with two early goals. To their credit though they came back and managed to find an equaliser.

Torres

Spanish striker Fernando Torres has been heavily criticised for his poor form this season, in recent games though he is starting to look like the deadly marksman of old. In the first half he caused Everton centre-backs Sylvain Distin and Johnny Heitinga all sorts of problems.

He looked like he wants to play the game again unlike in the days of Roy Hodgson’s reign when he looked uninterested and unfit.

He was also unlucky not to add a goal to his performance, as he hit Tim Howard’s post. It’s vital for Liverpool that Torres continues this revival because he is one of the few players in the Liverpool team capable of inspiring victory. If Torres can continue in this vein then Liverpool should move up the table very quickly.

Early

It’s still early days for Kenny Dalglish as manager. He has improved the performances of the club in just three games in charge. Yet he has lost two and drew one but most of the players are showing that they now want to play for the club.

Youngsters

Another positive for Dalglish is the use of the youngsters such as Martin Kelly, Jonjo Shelvey and Jay Spearing. Dalglish has worked at the Liverpool academy so he knows what the likes of Kelly and Spearing are capable of.

Kelly and Spearing started yesterday’s derby and neither of them let their boss down. Kelly looks like a good prospect for the future and with regular right-back Glen Johnson being in poor form this season could get a good run in the starting line-up. Dalglish has even switched Johnson to left-back in recent games to accommodate Kelly’s inclusion at right-back.

Work

Despite the positives Kenny Dalglish can take from this game he will know that he still has his work cut-out to turn Liverpool’s season around. And he may not get any transfer funds to spend in this transfer window, so he will have to try and get everything he can out of his current group of players.

Dalglish has halted the short losing run Liverpool have been on in recent games but he will be hoping that the Reds get back to winning ways sooner rather than later or they could be in big trouble come May.

Can Kenny Dalglish turn Liverpool’s season around?