The Merseyside derby at Goodison Park featured a performance no one expected

It was thought that Egypt's Mohamed Salah, Uruguay's Darwin Nunez or even Colombia's Luis Diaz might shine on the pitch, but one of Liverpool's best players during the Merseyside derby at Goodison Park was Joe Gomez. The defender did a great job of blocking the Toffees' chances in a game that ended goalless.

With the injury to Cameroon's Joel Matip, Gomez has been in the starting line-up in defence since the Premier League match against Manchester United on Matchday 3. His adaptation has been swift and he has built a solid defence alongside Dutchman Virgil Van Dijk to become one of the Reds' best defenders. 

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At the age of 25, the English defender has reached footballing maturity and is showing his best form. This has been recognised by Liverpool fans who applaud his good work in defence despite the team's poor form, which failed to beat their arch-rivals in a game that left many disappointed on Saturday afternoon.

During the derby, Gomez hit 81 per cent of his passes, had one chance created with 95 forward touches and eleven long runs to the forwards. Defensively he was impassable with ten fumble recoveries and three interceptions. He won all the ground duels and won two aerial duels.

<strong>Allison Becker featured</strong>

The other player who also stood out in the Merseyside derby was 29-year-old Brazilian goalkeeper Allison Becker. He helped keep Liverpool scoreless with four important saves and six recoveries in his area. The South American is taking on the mantle of being a leader for the Reds in the absence of Jordan Henderson through injury.