A Brief History of the Merseyside Derby

All eyes will be on Goodison Park tonight, as Liverpool and Everton meet for the final Merseyside Derby of the 2023-24 season. The match will also mark the final time Jurgen Klopp manages the Reds in the derby, with the German manager boasting an impressive 9 victories from his previous 18 matches, with only 1 defeat during those 18 games.

Should Liverpool win tonight, Klopp will set a new record of 10 Merseyside Derby victories, something no other Liverpool manager has achieved in the 131-year history of the derby. Victory will also keep the Reds firmly in the title mix, level on points with Arsenal, and four ahead of Manchester City (though City would have two games in hand).

Before tonight's game, LFC - Back On Our Perch has been looking back through the archives to bring you a history of the derby, as well as stats and records from the previous 243 games.

The Origins of the Merseyside Derby

There are many local derbies in English football, with most major towns and cities across the country boasting multiple football teams, but the Merseyside Derby is unique, both in terms of how close the two clubs are to each other (less than 1 mile apart), and the fact that both teams have played at Anfield, with Everton playing there from 1884 until 1891, before Liverpool FC was created in 1892 and began using the stadium.

The first Merseyside Derby was played back in 1893, with Everton winning 3 - 0, while Liverpool's first victory in the fixture came in September 1897, thanks to a 3 - 1 victory.

Since then, a total of 243 derbies have been played between the two teams, with Liverpool enjoying the greater success, with 99 victories so far. Although the derby has been paused on several occasions, due to Liverpool and Everton being in different leagues, it has been a continuous fixture on the English top flight since the 1962 - 63 season.

The derby is often referred to as the 'friendly derby', because of the friendly rivalry between the two sets of fans, with members of the same household often supporting different clubs. However, on the pitch, the match is often fiery and bad-tempered, with more red cards being shown in this game than any other in the history of the Premier League.

Merseyside Derby Stats and Records

Total Merseyside Derby's to date: 243
Liverpool Wins: 99 Everton Wins: 67 Draws: 77
Total Liverpool Goals: 343
Total Everton Goals: 267
Date of first Derby: 13th October 1893 (Everton won 3-0)
First Liverpool win: 25th September 1897 (Liverpool won 3-1)
Most Derby appearances: Neville Southall (Everton) - 41
Most Derby goals: Ian Rush (Liverpool) - 25
Biggest winning margin: Liverpool 6 - 0 Everton (1935/36 season)
Total red cards - 29
Longest unbeaten Derby run - Liverpool, 23 games, between 2011 and 2020

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