Everton and Liverpool could not be separated in the 224th Merseyside derby this afternoon as they played out a goalless draw at Goodison Park.
The visitors came closest to getting a goal when Jordon Ibe let fly from distance in the first half, only to see his sweetly-struck effort smash against the post.
Everton's best chance, and indeed their only shot on target, came with just three minutes of normal time remaining as Seamus Coleman was denied by Simon Mignolet.
Here, Sports Mole takes an in-depth look at whether a draw was the right result on Merseyside.
Match statistics
EVERTON
Shots: 6
On target: 1
Possession: 45%
Corners: 3
Fouls: 11
LIVERPOOL
Shots: 17
On target: 6
Possession: 55%
Corners: 6
Fouls: 7
Was the result fair?
The statistics above suggest that Liverpool dominated this game and, while they certainly had the better of things in general play, they cannot have too many complaints at having only come away with a point from this match. They may have had more possession and more shots, but they still struggled to create any really clear-cut chances throughout the 90 minutes.
Of course, Ibe's rasping effort that came back off the post was a narrow escape for Everton, but, aside from that, there were not many instances where they really looked like conceding. Their own threat at the other end of the pitch was minimal, with by far their best chance coming in the closing stages when Coleman got forward into the Liverpool area.
It was a rather disappointing Merseyside derby, with both sides seemingly content to settle for a point in the end. The first half was a largely absorbing affair, but the second half was a lot less entertaining and petered out a bit. Liverpool will feel that they perhaps should have won this game on the balance of play and chances created, but a draw is by no means an unjust result.
Everton's performance
Everton spent a lot of their time defending this afternoon, but they did it well. There were a couple of spells during the match when Liverpool were very much on top and had the hosts hemmed in to their own half, but they were largely limited to long-range efforts in an attempt to break the deadlock. The home defence was stubborn and gave the likes of Raheem Sterling and Philippe Coutinho very little to work with.
Roberto Martinez will not be too happy with how little his side tested Mignolet, particularly as they won the ball in some promising areas. The Toffees had a clear plan to target Mamadou Sakho when the French defender was in possession, and they almost reaped the rewards on more than one occasion. They hounded him well and defended from the front throughout the match.
It is now just one win in 10 games for Everton in all competitions, but they are at least beginning to look a little more solid at the back. They have now kept three consecutive clean sheets for the first time since November 2013 and have not been beaten inside 90 minutes since New Year's Day. A point against Liverpool, who themselves are in fine form, is not a bad result and Martinez will look to take the positives from today's match.
Liverpool's performance
While a draw away in a derby match is a solid enough result, it does not really do much for Liverpool's Champions League ambitions. A win was more important for the Reds than it was for Everton today given their goals for the season at this stage, but the visitors did not really do enough to warrant all three points.
Of course, as the stats show, they did more than Everton when looking for a winner, but many of their shots came from range and were speculative efforts that never really threatened Joel Robles in the home goal. They will feel unfortunate that Ibe's brilliant strike did not fly in but, and, save for a couple of times Sterling got into the box, there were not many other instances where they came close to scoring.
Defensively, they looked shaky at times despite their clean sheet, with Sakho and Emre Can caught in possession on a number of occasions, but Martin Skrtel was usually there to mop up. There are positives to take from the result, namely that it keeps their unbeaten league run going, but for a side that had begun to show some exciting attacking intent again over the last few weeks, it was a frustratingly tepid performance on the whole.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Martin Skrtel: It was slim pickings for the man of the match today. No player stood out and, while Ibe was a contender for his bright derby debut, the award goes to Skrtel for keeping Everton's attack quiet throughout. Often it was up to the Liverpool man to clear up messes left by Sakho or Can, and he always seemed to be in the right place to deal with any danger that came into the Liverpool box.
Biggest gaffe
Sakho's uncertainness in possession throughout the match has already been mentioned, and Everton really preyed on that. The defender was caught in possession deep inside his own half more than once and was fortunate that it never resulted in an Everton goal.
Referee performance
It was a strangely low-key Merseyside derby for the officials, who only really had one minor scuffle to deal with all game. Referee Anthony Taylor would have been expecting a busier afternoon.
What next?
Everton: Things do not get any easier for Everton as they face a trip to Chelsea on Wednesday night.
Liverpool: Liverpool also have a big game as they take on top-four rivals Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane.
Barney Corkhill
