High Press Episode 2: Liverpool fans don’t want Everton relegated

High Press Episode 2:

Derbies are the focus of Episode 2 of William Hill’s High Press, featuring derby day stories, managerial spats and much more.

A derby or a rivalry?

Alison Bender, John Cross, Matt Law and Paul McCarthy discuss what fuels a rivalry, why derbies are important and the best derby fixtures from Merseyside to North London.

Cross named a 1987 Littlewood’s Cup semi-final replay between Tottenham and Arsenal as the favourite match he’s ever attended. The panel then looked to define what a derby is after a disagreement about Liverpool versus Manchester United.

Chelsea v Spurs 2016

Speaking about Chelsea and Tottenham’s Battle of the Bridge in 2016, Cross described it as ‘everything that a derby is’. After Cross went in-depth on why that match so special, Law joked that he had ‘completed nicked his choice’.

Law added that he’d ‘love to do one of the big foreign derbies, and would love to go to a Scottish derby’.

Talking about the Old Firm, McCarthy said, “Not the best games, because there’s just too much on them… “All I remember is the noise!”

Derbies

McCarthy and Cross called out Bender for claiming El Clasico was a derby, with the panel ultimately agreeing it’s a rivalry rather than a derby due to the geographical locations of the two clubs.

The panel circled back to Chelsea and Tottenham, with Law identifying it as a fascinating matchup due to Mauricio Pochettino’s involvement.

Law explained, “Sometimes derbies can be driven round the storylines and personalities within them. Obviously for years we had Sol Campbell who’d crossed the divide between Tottenham and Arsenal and that definitely added something pretty horrible for a long time…

“I do think that first sight of Pochettino in a Chelsea dugout, given what he meant to Tottenham means that’ll be a supercharged derby this season.”

Importance of local players

The discussion turned to the importance of local players, with Law mentioning Gabby Agbonlahor’s record against Birmingham City and Jack Grealish scoring the winning goal in the derby after being punched by an opposition fan.

Cross responded, “Certain managers will embrace that homegrown culture… and will always think that’s important.”

After touching on the rivalry between Jose Mourinho and Arsene Wenger, Bender and McCarthy debated whether managerial tension is important for derbies. The panel agreed that Mourinho and Wenger held the biggest managerial rivalry, with an acknowledgement that Mourinho got into the Frenchman’s head.

Merseyside derby

Turning their attention to the Merseyside derby, Cross said, “Never in a million years do I believe Liverpool fans would want Everton to go down.”
“You can go to an average game at Goodison and still be enthralled by the atmosphere,”

Cross continued. “It completely transforms your experience, and when Liverpool have to go into that bearpit, it’s one of the occasions of the season.”

To conclude the discussion, the panel touched on a few other derbies, including Tyne-Wear, South Coast, Preston-Blackpool and East Lancs.

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