Three key battles ahead of Everton’s trip to Merseyside rivals Liverpool

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Joel Matip vs Romelu Lukaku

Ask anybody to name the most in-form player on the Anfield pitch on Saturday afternoon and the majority of people will say the same name; Everton and Belgium sensation Romelu Lukaku.

Lukaku has been unstoppable since the beginning of the calendar year, scoring eleven goals and assisting three more in his previous ten league matches whilst becoming the first Everton player to ever reach the 20-goal milestone in a Premier League season; also his best return in a campaign.

The 23-year-old has scored five times against Liverpool in previous encounters and, if Everton leave Anfield with anything, Lukaku will almost certainly play an important and leading role.

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The man charged with the task of containing the big Belgian will be Cameroonian centre-back Joel Matip, who will need to work tirelessly alongside Ragnar Klavan to keep the Toffees man subdued.

Yet Matip can take heart from the last time these two sides met back in December, where Lukaku barely had a sniff in front of goal in an inspired and determined defensive display by the Reds.

Although the 25-year-old was absent on that occasion, Liverpool’s deep defensive line and narrow positioning proved that it is possible to keep the Belgian quiet if a game plan is acutely executed by Jurgen Klopp, and with home advantage this time the Reds will look to replicate this discipline.

However keeping a man like Lukaku quiet for 90 minutes is not an easy task, and it could turn into an enthralling clash between two physical and intense characters.

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