The Merseyside derby between Everton and Liverpool provides the platform for one of the biggest rivalries in British football.

With little history of violence between their fanbases and both clubs often coming together in times of tragedy, the Merseyside derby is referred to as the ‘friendly derby’ of English football.

But don’t be fooled; Toffees and Reds supporters desperately want to win each occasion their sides meet, and the game itself is always encircled by an incredibly intense atmosphere, whether held at Anfield or Goodison Park.

Both teams have joined different periods of affluence too as far as trophies are concerned, although historically Liverpool have always enjoyed the larger trophy cabinet.

With Liverpool hosting Everton in the Premier League this week, GIVEMESPORT have taken a look at the most talented players to feature for both clubs.

They may not necessarily be the biggest club legends, but they are the most gifted players to have represented either the Reds or the Toffees – whether they showed that on Merseyside specifically, or elsewhere throughout their careers.

10 James Rodriguez

Everton – 2020-2021

James Rodriguez’s time at Everton was short and not especially sweet. The Toffees were trudging their way through the Farhad Moshiri era and ongoing fitness issues meant the Colombian’s involvement was always inherently limited. That said, Rodriguez still provided six goals and four assists in 23 Premier League appearances during his single season at Goodison Park, and offered the sparkle that Carlo Ancelotti’s side otherwise desperately lacked.

And regardless of his time at Goodison Park, when it comes to natural ability Rodriguez is up there with the best to have featured for either Merseyside club. His peak was the 2014 World Cup, when he won the Golden Boot, the Goal of the Tournament and subsequently the Puskas Award for his spectacular goals which took Colombia to the quarter-finals.

After that, the attacking midfielder represented Real Madrid and Bayern Munich which, in addition to spells at Porto and Monaco, meant Rodriguez had scored goals in the English, Spanish, German, French and Portuguese top flights. He also won domestic titles with Porto, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich, and was part of the Los Blancos side that won back-to-back Champions League titles in 2015/16 and 2016/17.

9 Dixie Dean

Everton – 1924-1938

Dixie Dean’s goalscoring exploits were so notorious that a captured German soldier in World War 2 is said to have exclaimed to his captives “F*** your Churchill and f*** your Dixie Dean”.

The Everton legend was simply a phenomenal goalscorer and ended his stint at Goodison Park with almost as many appearances as goals, netting 383 times in 433 outings. That includes 349 goals in 399 league games, and a campaign in which Dean scored an incredible 63 times across all competitions. That season saw him set the record for most goals in a single top flight season, managing 60 in 39 appearances, as Everton won the league title.

Dean also pulled off the incredible feat of firing Everton to the second division and first division titles in consecutive seasons, scoring 39 goals and then 45 goals respectively in the 1930/31 and 1931/32 campaigns. Dean recorded more goals than caps for England with 18 in 16, and bagged hat-tricks against Belgium and Luxembourg.

8 Luis Suarez

Liverpool – 2011-2014

Luis Suarez spent just three-and-a-half seasons at Liverpool but in that time produced among the most dominant two years any individual has enjoyed in the Premier League. After an unspectacular first 18 months at Anfield, the appointment of Brendan Rodgers in summer 2012 helped unleash the Uruguayan’s true potential as a relentless, unstoppable, attacking force.

Suarez would continually break tackles, endlessly press defenders, score all types of goals including long-range belters, create opportunities for his team-mates, and could take up virtually any role in the forward line, operating as a winger, a No.10, a lone striker or as part of a partnership. Ability-wise he was up there with any striker in the world, but he also possessed a unique energy, doggedness and determination that made him an excellent all-round, team player.

That combination allowed Suarez to score 61 goals in his final two seasons at Liverpool, almost clinching the Reds the Premier League title during the 2013/14 season. Of course, Suarez doesn’t come without criticism for the Patrice Evra racial abuse incident and biting Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic. But looking exclusively at his level of talent, he’s one of the best the Premier League has ever seen.

7 Gary Lineker

Everton – 1985-1985

Gary Lineker is one of the greatest goalscorers English football has ever produced. He won three first division Golden Boots in England, and was the top scorer at the 1986 World Cup, which in turn saw him finish second place in that year’s Ballon d’Or.

But it also saw Lineker’s Toffees career come to an abrupt end. After just one season, in which Lineker managed 40 goals in 57 appearances across all competitions, an offer from Barcelona convinced manager Howard Kendall to sell.

At the Nou Camp, the Three Lions forward won the European Cup Winners’ Cup and the Copa del Rey, before returning to England and lifting the FA Cup with Tottenham in the 1990/91 campaign.

Lineker’s England career came to an end a year later, finishing on 48 goals from 80 caps.

6 Kevin Keegan

Liverpool – 1971-1977

Kevin Keegan is the only British footballer to win two Ballon d’Ors. That alone speaks to his ability, but he was also a crucial part of Liverpool’s success throughout the 1970s, winning three first division titles, one FA Cup, one European Cup and two UEFA Cups during his time on Merseyside.

It was upon moving to Hamburg, where Keegan won another league title and reached another European Cup final, that he enjoyed wider acclaim in the form of winning back-to-back Ballon d’Ors.

But even after that, Keegan returned to England and showed his quality, managing 37 goals in 68 top flight games for Southampton, before all-but ending his career in the second division scoring goals for fun at Newcastle United.

Keegan was a well-rounded forward best known for his dribbling ability and unusual deadliness in the air despite measuring in at just 5 foot 8.

5 John Barnes

Liverpool – 1987-1997

John Barnes is one of the most naturally gifted players England has ever produced and has even been mooted by some as Liverpool’s greatest ever player.

He won league titles at Anfield during the 1987/88 and 1989/90 seasons, in addition to two FA Cups and the League Cup. There were individual accolades too – most notably the PFA Players’ Player of the Year award in 1988 and the FWA Footballer of the Year award in 1988 and 1990 – but unfortunately for Barnes, Liverpool’s ban from European competitions after the Heysel Stadium disaster prevented him from winning a European trophy, which also essentially ruled him out of the running for the Ballon d’Or.

But in terms of natural ability, he’s incredibly fondly remembered. Barnes possessed unusual technical ability, flair and creative intelligence for an English player first developed in the 1980s, but also combined that with immense natural power and balance – the latter trait made him especially difficult for opposing defenders to win the ball off, and almost impossible to stop when at full speed.

A series of serious injuries in the early 1990s shortened Barnes’ peak as an effective wide forward, one who had previously scored at least 15 goals in three league campaigns for Liverpool. But the former Watford star’s quality in possession allowed him to reinvent himself as a central midfielder and he continued to delight fans in a less dynamic role.

4 Mohamed Salah

Liverpool – 2017-Present

Mohamed Salah had already won everything there is to win at Liverpool before the current season, and yet there is a feeling that 2024/25 could be his greatest campaign yet in a Reds jersey.

The Egyptian forward very quickly established himself as a phenomenal goalscoring threat at Anield after arriving from Roma in summer 2017, netting 44 goals across all competitions and setting a record for most Premier League goals scored in a 38-game season, although it was subsequently beaten by Manchester City’s Erling Haaland.

Salah’s scoring exploits continued as Liverpool lifted the 2018/19 Champions League title and 2019/20 Premier League title. But it’s this season that Salah’s quality as an all-round attacking player has truly stood out, not only providing an incredible supply of goals but also using his intelligence, trickery and speed of foot to create goals for others and contribute to all facets of Liverpool’s forward play.

Salah’s Liverpool career isn’t over just yet but he’ll almost certainly be remembered as one of the Premier League’s and the Reds’ all-time greats.

3 Steven Gerrard

Liverpool – 1998-2015

Steven Gerrard’s Liverpool career spanned almost two decades and in that time he established himself as one of the greatest players in the club’s history. While a Premier League title always evaded the England icon, he played a fundamental role in various cup wins, namely two FA Cups, three League Cups, one UEFA Cup and the Champions League title in 2004/05.

So fundamental, in fact, that Gerrard would often drag an otherwise underwhelming Liverpool team through games almost single-handed, leading the comeback against AC Milan in Istanbul and scoring twice against West Ham in the 2006 FA Cup final. Indeed, Gerrard’s style of play centred around an all-action approach that had him involved in all facets of the game, combining a variety of technical demands with impressive upper body strength, aggression and dogged determination.

Gerrard was without question one of the greatest midfielders of his era and yet remained loyal to Liverpool despite them rarely being genuine contenders in the Premier League title race.

2 Wayne Rooney

Everton – 2002-2004, 2017-2018

It’s true that Wayne Rooney’s peak years came at Manchester United, where he established himself as one of the best players in the world by winning five Premier League titles and the 2007/08 Champions League crown. But it shouldn’t be forgotten that he was an Everton product – a gem who emerged from their academy to become one of the Premier League’s and England’s greatest ever players.

There wasn’t much Wazza couldn’t do on a football pitch. In fact, it even became a criticism that Rooney was positionally ill-disciplined, such was his eagerness to be constantly involved in play. Throughout his career, the former England captain operated as a centre-forward, No.10, winger and even a deep-lying midfielder, and in all roles provided an effective mix of technical mastery and gritty aggression.

Rooney ranks third for both goals and assists throughout Premier League history, and although only a small portion of those came at Everton, a return 36 goal involvements from 117 appearances isn’t to be sniffed at considering the forward’s two Toffees spells came at the beginning and end of his career.

1 Kenny Dalglish

Liverpool – 1977-1990

Kenny Dalglish picked up where Kevin Keegan left off when he turned up on Merseyside in 1977, after eight years of success at Celtic. A small and somewhat unassuming forward who wasn’t particularly strong or quick, King Kenny’s genius came from his uniquely high football intelligence and ability to anticipate the game, combined with elite technical quality.

Dalglish would often drop into midfield to create goalscoring chances for others, most typically his strike partner Ian Rush, but was a potent finisher in his own right, netting 375 times for club and country throughout his career.

With Dalglish as the brains of the team, the Reds won six first division titles, one FA Cup, four League Cups and three European Cups. Individually, he finished second in the 1983 Ballon d’Or, the same year he won the PFA Players’ Player of the Year award and FWA Footballer of the Year award for a second time.