Merseyside had two excellent football teams.

In the thick of a title fight, Jurgen Klopp put his idea to the test, and it turned out that the old Scottish Godfather of Anfield was correct all along.

And this is especially true given Everton’s current state of chaos.

Klopp made nine changes to his starting lineup from Saturday’s FA Cup Final victory, but his players delivered, rallying from behind to beat Southampton and keep the title battle alive heading into Sunday’s showdown.

The Reds still require Manchester City to lose to Aston Villa – Steven Gerrard’s Villa, of course – while Klopp’s side must beat Wolves at home.

Despite the fact that Liverpool now has a deep roster and Klopp would have had an army of sports scientists informing him his players were in the’red zone,’ which means they were tired but not physically exhausted, this was a risky move.

And, as is typical of Klopp, it paid off, with Takumi Minamino and Joel Matip scoring to put Liverpool’s quadruple-chasing side just a point behind Pep Guardiola’s winners.

Even those who are disappointed by the absence of regular football are willing to put their bodies on the line for the German.

Just 72 hours after Liverpool had won, Klopp had complained about the fixture’s schedule – albeit not so much about the TV money that pays the majority of his compensation.