Virgil van Dijk header earns Liverpool last-gasp Merseyside derby win at Everton

By Carl Markham, Press Association

Virgil van Dijk scored an stoppage-time header to win the first Merseyside derby at Hill Dickinson Stadium and boost Liverpool’s hopes of securing Champions League football next season.

The centre-back shrugged off the grappling of James Tarkowski to power home Dominik Szoboszlai’s inswinging corner into the six-yard box in the 10th minute of added time to silence the home crowd.

Victory put the Reds seven points ahead of sixth-placed Chelsea with five matches remaining, one of which is at home to the Stamford Bridge side.

Mohamed Salah’s final Merseyside derby had looked like ending in frustration until that late intervention.

The Egypt international has few milestones left to reach before the end of his storied Anfield career, but equalling Steven
Gerrard’s derby record of nine goals in these cross-city encounters was one of them, which he achieved with his 29th-minute opener.

Everton’s determination not to lose the first derby at their new home saw Beto’s fourth goal in three games bring a second-half equaliser, but Liverpool’s early-season habit of scoring late winners – which had deserted them for so long – returned with impeccable timing.