In a breathtaking climax to the final Merseyside derby held at Goodison Park on Wednesday, Everton captain James Tarkowski scored an equalizer deep into stoppage time, resulting in a 2-2 draw against Liverpool in the Premier League. This thrilling conclusion felt like something out of a storybook.

However, the game ended on a sour note. An interaction between Abdoulaye Doucouré and the away crowd ignited a brawl between the two sides. Referee Michael Oliver was then forced to issue four red cards. Liverpool's Jones, manager Arne Slot, and assistant coach Sipke Hulshoff were sent off, along with Everton's Doucouré.

Before the draw, Liverpool, with this game in hand, had extended their lead at the top of the league table to seven points over second - placed Arsenal. Meanwhile, Everton, with this result, climbed to 15th place, 10 points above the relegation zone.

Spanning 131 years of Goodison derbies, this draw was a fitting finale. The final record between the two teams stands at 41 wins each and 38 draws, highlighting the intense and evenly - matched nature of this historic rivalry.

Liverpool looked poised for victory until Tarkowski struck in the 98th minute with a blistering shot into the top corner. Bedlam ensued with scores of fans piling onto the pitch, before a lengthy VAR review ruled the goal was onside.

The full-time whistle sparked a scuffle between the players, and both Everton's Doucouré and the Reds' Curtis Jones were shown red cards after Jones took umbrage at Doucouré celebrating in front of the Liverpool stands, while Liverpool boss Arne Slot was also shown a red.

"Amazing to score and what an amazing night," a smiling Tarkowski said. "I just saw the ball going wide and thought 'Last minute, why not?' It managed to fall to me and let it rip.

"Listen to that," he added about the crowd, who serenaded the team with "Forever Everton." "That's amazing. They will remember it. I'm just proud of my team, stuck at it."

Everton's Beto had the old stadium shaking with his 11th-minute goal, running onto a free kick that Jarrad Branthwaite cleverly slipped into the left side of the box and slotting the ball under the arm of goalkeeper Alisson.

The jubilation lasted all of five minutes as Alexis Mac Allister levelled, timing his run perfectly to meet Mohamed Salah's cross then finishing with a glancing header to the bottom corner.

Both sides had chances in a chaotic match and the league's top scorer Salah struck to give Liverpool the lead in the 73rd minute against the run of play with his 22nd goal of the campaign. Everton struggled to clear and Branthwaite headed Curtis Jones' shot into the path of Salah, who slammed the ball in.

Tarkowski's winner was a nice change of fortune for the defender after he gave away both goals in their FA Cup loss to Bournemouth on Saturday.

"I had a tough weekend so it's nice to get one back," he said.

The final derby before Everton move to their new stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock for the start of the 2025-26 season was due to be played in December but was postponed because of Storm Darragh, and its midweek prime-time evening slot on Wednesday made it the final game to be played under the Goodison floodlights.

Both teams squandered several chances in the breathless match, with Liverpool narrowly missing just before halftime when Jordan Pickford saved Dominik Szoboszlai's low drive and then Tarkowski slid in to stop Luis Díaz from having a shot from close range.

Everton had a couple of chances early in the second including a sitter that Doucouré headed well wide that had manager David Moyes holding his head in his hands in disbelief.

Branthwaite celebrated what he thought was a goal in the second half, but it was chalked off for offside.