The final Merseyside derby at Goodison Park ended in a four-goal thriller.

Beto broke the deadlock after barely 10 minutes from Jarrad Branthwaite’s well-worked free kick as he raced clear of Ibrahima Konate to slot home.

Liverpool were soon level courtesy of Alexis Mac Allister meeting a cross by Mohamed Salah with a deft header to beat Jordan Pickford comfortably.

Arne Slot’s side took the lead in the final quarter of an hour as Salah seized poor defending from a Luis Diaz cross to rifle into the Park End’s net.

But deep in added time, James Tarkowski salvaged a point for Everton by volleying Tim Iroegbunam’s flick-on in front of a rapturous Gwladys Street.

Four red cards were issued after the final whistle as Abdoulaye Doucoure, Curtis Jones, Slot and his assistant Sipke Hulshoff were all dismissed.

Both clubs finish tied on 41 victories apiece in all competitions at the Grand Old Lady while the visitors moved seven points clear in the Premier League.

Here were the key talking points from Goodison Park:

A fitting finale under the lights

Goodison’s 120th and final meeting between Everton and Liverpool was always destined to go down in history, but few anticipated it ending like this.

The fixture has conjured up so many memorable moments and flashpoints, many of which were revisited during the course of Wednesday’s chaotic affair.

A combined 103 minutes saw a microcosm of derby hallmarks with a thrilling contest punctuated by heart-breaking injury, dramatic goals and red cards.

The visitors looked set to deliver one final indignity by claiming the ultimate bragging rights in edging their neighbours with a 42nd victory at the stadium.

But the Grand Old Lady delivered anything other than formality mere seconds after travelling Kopites chanted about how they had ‘won the league’ here.

James Tarkowski’s 98th minute strike, drilled into the roof of the Gwladys Street End’s net, lit the blue touch paper on a powder keg atmosphere.

A mini pitch invasion and lengthy VAR check only served to intensify the emotion inside the famous old ground before bedlam at the final whistle.

Widespread skirmishes saw four sendings-off with Arne Slot and his assistant Sipke Hulshoff adding to the Premier League’s most ill-disciplined fixture.

If this proves to be Goodison’s last-ever game beneath the floodlights, a derby which really did have all it was one hell of a way to sign off.

Oliver inconsistency fuels the fire

Referee Michael Oliver continues to find himself in the firing line.

Just days after being stood down following backlash to a contentious Arsenal red card, the Northumberland native was assigned to this derby encounter.

Hindsight suggests that it was a glaring mistake by refereeing body PGMOL.

Oliver achieved a rare feat of managing to infuriate both sides of the Stanley Park divide with a series of inconsistent decisions across both halves.

Kopites will argue the free kick from which Beto’s early opener was derived had been flaky while Evertonians can claim he shirked other disciplinary calls.

He was noticeably card happy, cautioning six players in the first half alone, only to then hold off despite numerous walking the disciplinary tightrope.

Two incidents involving Ibrahima Konate and Beto did little to help his case with the pair caught up in flashpoints which included Tarkowski’s late leveller.

Beto saw penalty appeals waved away after Konate appeared to handle the ball while the defender felt he was impeded by his opposite number in added time.

PGMOL has spent large parts of this season attempting to reconcile its referees’ shortcomings and Oliver’s actions only served to fuel the fire.

Nothing will be the same again

On a night when Goodison’s rich history was at the fore, the late Alan Ball’s edict that ‘Once Everton touches you, nothing will be the same’ came to mind.

Next season will see the derby played out in a new setting as David Moyes’ side take ownership of their impressive future home at Bramley-Moore Dock.

Yet for all the fanfare around the 52,888-seat venue on the city’s waterfront, something will be lost when blue and red collide again in the next 12 months.

Goodison is by no means perfect; its rustic charm has eroded with every year that its hosts had failed to successfully move beyond its tight-knit confines.

Every attempt to replicate its key traits at Bramley-Moore, with fans stationed in close proximity to the pitch, will seek to limit the impact of their departure.

How that will translate on occasions such as this, however, is far less certain.

The coach greeting laid on for Everton’s players on their arrival may lack the same gravitas when it is no longer bouncing off Goodison’s terraced streets.

So, too, will the ear-splitting cacophony at kick-off which meant that Iliman Ndiaye could not hear Oliver’s whistle to signal the start of this game.

Everton’s break with their spiritual home has been long overdue but true to Ball’s oft-quoted declaration, things will never be the same again.