With Everton sitting ahead of Liverpool in the table, the hosts knew a victory would be vital to any hopes of clinching a top-four finish.
However, such ambitions were dashed in a first half that saw injuries sustained to Stephen Warnock, Dietmar Hamann and Fernando Morientes – all of whom needed substituting, the first time in the club’s history a trio of changes were made in the opening 45 minutes of a game.
Nevertheless, Liverpool did go into the interval with a two-goal lead – Steven Gerrard caressing a free-kick into the bottom corner before Luis Garcia reacted quickest to head in from a shot that had rebounded off the woodwork.