One of the standout days in the English football calendar takes place tomorrow as Liverpool host Everton at Anfield in the 223rd Merseyside derby.
Neither side go into the match in great form, with Liverpool having suffered back-to-back league defeats and picked up just six points from their opening five games, while Everton are one point worse off.
However, the passion and emotion involved in matches between these two sides often means that form is left on the training ground, and both will be hoping that is the case going into Saturday's lunchtime kickoff.
Whatever happens, another chapter will be added to the long and intense rivalry between two of England's most storied teams, and below Sports Mole has picked out five of the most memorable encounters between the Merseyside neighbours.
1. Everton 0-5 Liverpool, 1982
No player has scored more goals in Merseyside derbies than Ian Rush, who grew up supporting Everton but quickly became the scourge of his boyhood club throughout his career.
In all, he netted 25 times against the Toffees, but his finest individual moment came in 1982 when he scored five of Liverpool's goals in a 5-0 rout of their fierce rivals at Goodison Park.
His third strike saw him become the first player to score a hat-trick in a Merseyside derby since 1935, and the first (and so far only) Liverpool player to achieve the feat at Goodison Park.
2. Liverpool 3-1 Everton, FA Cup final 1986
Never was the rivalry between Liverpool and Everton greater that in the mid-1980s, when the two Merseyside clubs were regularly battling it out for trophies and widely regarded as the best two teams in the country.
Having beaten the Toffees to the league title a week previously, Kenny Dalglish took his Liverpool side to Wembley looking to clinch the double in the first ever all-Merseyside FA Cup final.
Everton looked to be on their way to exacting a measure of revenge when Gary Lineker opened the scoring, but Rush popped up yet again with two goals either side of a Craig Johnston strike to send Liverpool to victory.
3. Liverpool 3-2 Everton, FA Cup final 1989
For all the emotion that usually surrounds derby day on Merseyside, none will come close to the FA Cup final of 1989. Just five weeks previously, Merseyside united in grief over the tragic events of Hillsborough, leading to the subsequent match between Liverpool and Everton being dubbed 'the friendly final'.
The game would have been special whatever the scoreline, but it just so happened to provide one of the most entertaining FA Cup finals in history too. John Aldridge gave Liverpool the lead in the fourth minute, and they held that advantage until the 89th - when Stuart McCall forced extra time with a last-gasp equaliser.
More drama came in the added-on period, with a Rush goal being cancelled out by McCall's wonderful second. However, it was Rush who once again broke Everton hearts with a glancing header from John Barnes's wicked cross to clinch the cup for Liverpool.
4. Everton 4-4 Liverpool, 1991
Two years after meeting in the final of the competition, Liverpool and Everton were once again paired together in the FA Cup, this time for a fifth-round clash. What followed, after a goalless draw in the initial meeting, was one of the greatest games in the tournament's long and illustrious history, and one that had major consequences for the Reds.
Kenny Dalglish's side continually took the lead in a pulsating match at Goodison Park, but the hosts always found a way back, equalising four times to force a replay, which they would go on to win.
The drama did not stop at the final whistle, however, as Dalglish - arguably Liverpool's greatest ever player and a man who had experienced huge highs and desperate lows during his time as manager - finally called it a day and retired from his position at Anfield.
5. Everton 2-3 Liverpool, 2001
A typically action-packed derby between the two sides saw arguably the most dramatic finish in any match between the two Merseyside rivals. Liverpool were well on the way to victory when Emile Heskey and Markus Babbel put them two goals up at Goodison Park, but the hosts soon fought back.
Duncan Ferguson and David Unsworth both netted to level things up for Everton, who would have fancied their chances of going on to claim all three points when Igor Biscan was shown a red card. Robbie Fowler had also missed a penalty for the visitors, but his blushes were spared with a late, late twist.
Gary McAllister was all set to hoist one final free kick into the box from 40 yards out, but the Scot had other ideas as he saw goalkeeper Paul Gerrard out of position. He curled his effort into the bottom corner, past the despairing dive of Gerrard to seal a dramatic three points for his side.
Barney Corkhill
