Wayne Rooney remarked that Liverpool secured a highly intelligent player, one who left Everton’s defence completely bewildered.
Liverpool secured the Merseyside bragging rights at the weekend, defeating Everton in the derby and keeping their perfect start to the Premier League season intact.
Arne Slot’s side made sure of victory with two first-half goals. The opener came when Mohamed Salah produced a delicate chip into the penalty area, which Ryan Gravenberch instinctively hooked over Jordan Pickford with a clever finish. Not long after, Liverpool doubled their advantage through Hugo Ekitike. The second goal was the result of slick interplay between Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai, before Gravenberch slipped a precise pass into Ekitike’s path. The French striker calmly slotted the ball beneath Pickford to give Liverpool breathing space.
The quality of the move leading to Ekitike’s strike earned admiration from Wayne Rooney, who was on analysis duty for Match of the Day. Rooney, a former Everton talisman, was full of praise for the young forward’s awareness and sharp movement. “For the second goal, when you look at the back line, they never get compact, they never push up together, and they never maintain a single line,” Rooney explained. He pointed out how Ekitike cleverly positioned himself behind Michael Keane, leaving the defender stranded, while James Tarkowski failed to react quickly enough to cover. Rooney also observed that Tarkowski’s choice of stride prevented him from blocking the shot, making it easier for Ekitike to find the net. He concluded by stressing that Liverpool’s constant interchanging of positions added to Everton’s defensive confusion.
Ekitike’s contribution could hardly have come at a better time for manager Arne Slot. With record signing Alexander Isak still being carefully managed after his midweek exertions in the Champions League against Atletico Madrid, Ekitike was restored to the starting eleven. The 22-year-old, who joined from Eintracht Frankfurt over the summer, has now scored four goals in just seven appearances for the Reds, underlining his early impact at Anfield.
Slot has already made it clear that he does not intend to change his system to accommodate both Isak and Ekitike at once, which effectively makes the number nine role a direct competition between the two. That reality places significant importance on every performance. For Ekitike, moments like his derby goal and the intelligence he showed in exploiting space behind defenders could give him the edge as he seeks to secure the role on a long-term basis.
If he continues to produce decisive contributions while Isak regains full fitness, Ekitike may force Slot to keep faith with him as Liverpool’s leading striker. His intelligent runs, work rate, and ability to adapt to the team’s fluid attacking style have already earned recognition, and as Rooney’s analysis suggests, his movement could be the factor that tips the balance in his favour.
