Liverpool coach Brendan Rodgers hailed Steven Gerrard and striker Daniel Sturridge as the Reds dismantled Everton, 4-0, in the Merseyside derby atAnfield on Tuesday. Captain Gerrard opened the scoring with a header from a corner before Sturridge notched a brace in quick succession to put the result beyond doubt before halftime. Top scorer LuisSuarez later added a fourth after the break before Sturridge missed out on his hat-trick after blasting a penalty over the bar.
“It was a brilliant individual performance fromDaniel,” Rodgers said. “His two finishes were sublime and he was outstanding in the game. He’s always a threat, he can score in every single game he plays in and normally does.”
Rodgers also highlighted the influence of Gerrard after he scored his eighth Merseyside derby goal in all competitions. “His influence in these games is wonderful. He organizes the team andscored a goal. He’s such a generous man. A local guy in a derby, to give away a penalty [to Sturridge] shows the mark of the man that he is. He led the team and was outstanding.”
Gerrard acknowledged that he had urged Sturridge to take the spot kick. “I’ll take responsibility for that, I’ve scored a hat trick against Everton and wanted Daniel to experience that feeling,” hetold BT Sport. “Daniel was magnificent, he absolutely destroyed them first half and the third goal killed Everton, it knocked the stuffing out of them. Then we knew we could hit them on the break andit worked a treat.”