Everton v Liverpool: The Merseyside derby has seen more red cards than any other Premier League fixture
The Toffees and the Reds have had a combined 21 players sent off in the Premier League era, five more than Liverpool v Manchester United
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EVERTON and Liverpool meet tonight in the season's first Merseyside derby at Goodison Park.
And history says that it could be a pretty feisty affair!
It might be known as the 'Friendly Derby' in the stands, with fans of both teams able to sit together, but on the pitch it is anything but.
The fixture has seen an incredible 21 red cards in the Premier League era, with Ramiro Funes Mori's horrific lunge on Divock Origi in April last season the latest.
That's miles ahead of the second most ill-disciplined fixture in Premier League football, which coincidentally, is Liverpool's other big derby.
Liverpool v Man United has seen 16 red cards handed out in top flight games since 1992, not a patch on the Reds' clashes with their cross town rivals.
Club legends Steven Gerrard (twice), Tony Hibbert, Tim Cahill and Robbie Fowler have all seen red in the Merseyside derby.
And when Phil Neville moved from Manchester United to Everton, he took his bitterness towards the Anfield club 34 miles up the M62 with him.
The younger Neville brother was shown a red card in his first ever Merseyside derby in 2005, and then followed that up with another sending off at Goodison Park two years later.
Incredibly, all of the Premier League's five most ill-disciplined fixtures feature either the Reds or the Toffees.
In third place is Everton v Newcastle with 15 reds, followed by Liverpool v Newcastle with 14 and Chelsea v Everton with 13.
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Liverpool travel to Goodison Park knowing that a win will move them into second place in the Premier League, six points behind leaders Chelsea.
But Everton can move into 7th after breaking out of a poor run with a late 2-1 win against Arsenal.
Ashley Williams headed home in the 86th minute after Mesut Ozil made no effort to pick him up from a corner.
Meanwhile the Ross Barkley contract saga rumbles on with Toffees boss Ronald Koeman saying a new deal for the 23-year-old is not a priority and the club being linked with Memphis Depay and Morgan Schneiderlin as replacements.
In the red half of the city, Liverpool striker Origi says he can't wait to renew hostilities with Funes Mori after the Argentine's horror tackle put him out for a month last season.
He said: “It was an official message.
“I keep on looking forward and I am very excited for the next game. How will I feel? I don’t know who is playing, but I am very motivated.”