Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp says that Marco Silva’s current Toffees team is the best he’s come up against during his Anfield reign.
The local rivals will meet in the Premier League for the first time this season on Sunday afternoon, with both sides having enjoyed strong starts to the campaign.
The Reds are second in the table and chasing down defending champions Manchester City, while Everton are in sixth place, a point ahead of Manchester United and six behind Chelsea in fourth.
Klopp’s men head into the game off the back of a disappointing defeat to Paris Saint Germain in the Champions League, while their opponents picked up a comfortable 1-0 home win against Cardiff City last weekend.
The German head coach is expecting another tough game for his side and he has surprisingly offered his glowing praise for Silva’s men ahead of the clash.
Jürgen Klopp on the latest #MerseysideDerby team news ahead of Sunday…#LIVEVE
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) November 30, 2018
“He [Silva] has the best squad, that is how it is,” Klopp told Sky Sports on Friday. “He has brought in players he wanted. Richarlison – what a player he is.
“[Theo] Walcott came in last year, Bernard came in this year, [Andre] Gomes came in this year, [Yerry] Mina came in this year.
“I am 100 per cent sure they would be a European team in whichever competition, in England it is quite difficult.
“But their development and improvement is obvious.”
Liverpool are still unbeaten in the league this term and harbour realistic title aspirations, but they cannot afford to lose any ground on City, who seem to be hitting their stride domestically after five successive wins.
Anfield has been a fortress for the Reds and it will take a monumental performance from Everton for them to emerge with a share of the spoils on Sunday, but they have managed to win five of their last seven league games.
