Liverpool's title dreams evaporate in derby loss to Everton

By Doug McIntyre
Published

Liverpool's dreams of sending departing manager Jürgen Klopp off with one final English Premier League title are all but over following Wednesday's 2-0 loss at crosstown rivals Everton. 

A first half goal from Everton center back Jarrad Branthwaite and another in the second by Dominic Calvert-Lewin was all the Toffees needed to stun the second-place Reds, who now sit three points behind Prem-leading Arsenal with four matches remaining in the 2023-24 season.

The Gunners have a plus-7 goal differential, the first tiebreaker if both teams finish even on points. Defending champions Manchester City is third, five points back of Arsenal. But with two games in hand on both the pacesetters and Liverpool, Pep Guardiola's City remains the favorite to claim an unprecedented fourth consecutive English title. 

Klopp, who in 2019 led Liverpool to its first league triumph in 30 years, announced in January that he would leave Anfield at season's end after almost a decade. The Reds have yet to name a successor for the wildly popular German manager, though Feyenoord's Dutch coach Arne Slot has emerged as the frontrunner in recent days according to reports in Europe. 

Wednesday's win was as important for Everton as it was deflating for Liverpool. The Toffees — who snapped a five-game winless streak in the Merseyside derby — are one of just six clubs never to have been relegated since the Premier League's inaugural 1992-93 season. But the club have been battling the drop this campaign since November, when they were docked a Prem-record 10 points for breaching financial rules. The penalty was later reduced to six points, though further two points were taken away earlier this month. Everton is now in 16th place, eights points clear of the relegation zone. 

Liverpool now must win each of its remaining four games and hope Arsenal and Man City slip up multiple times to have any realistic chance of claiming a 20th English crown next month. Man City next plays at Brighton on Thursday, while the Reds return to action Saturday in London against West Ham.

Doug McIntyre is a soccer writer for FOX Sports. Before joining FOX Sports in 2021, he was a staff writer with ESPN and Yahoo Sports and he has covered United States men's and women's national teams at multiple FIFA World Cups. Follow him on Twitter @ByDougMcIntyre.