Everton had it tough because of one player missing - Klopp

Liverpool host Everton in the 240th Merseyside derby on Sunday afternoon at Anfield 

The relegation-threatened Blues could slip into the Premier League bottom-three spot if they fail to win the two‐sided crucial showdown on Sunday.

And Klopp believes a big cause of the club's recent struggles has been the inability to keep Dominic Calvert-Lewin fit for the majority of the campaign.

"No, I didn't watch them often enough [to compare Frank Lampard with Rafa Benitez], not really," Klopp  said ahead of the Sunday meeting.

"I think the situation is becoming more and more difficult because of results, when Rafa was there, there was still some distance between Everton and the relegation zone and that has nothing to do with the way they played, it was just the way it developed.

"Obviously they have had some real injury problems this year too. Obviously if you lose Calvert-Lewin or cannot use him for nearly a whole season, that is a massive blow.

"He is one of the best strikers in England for sure. And then coming back and not having this type of rhythm and all these things. You do not have 12 of these types of players in your squad and then other things happen.

"I cannot say anything about different styles. They brought in different players, Donny van de Beek and Dele Alli, maybe some others, but I didn’t watch it that way."