For some it would have been the cue to self-indulge, a chance to play to the gallery and remind the world of their achievement.
Dirk Kuyt, though, is cut from a very different cloth. No matter that his header had settled the 213th Merseyside derby or brought up a half century of Liverpool goals, here was a man with no intention of milking the moment.
With a game to be won and a season to be saved, Kuyt was simply happy to join a huddle of celebrating team-mates and acknowledge the crowd with a pump of his fist before getting back down to the business of keeping an old foe quiet.
“It’s great to have scored 50 goals for the club and it’s even nicer that I managed to do it in such a special game,” said Kuyt.
“It means a lot that I have managed to do it but the main thing was for us to beat Everton.”
The irony, however, is that Kuyt is a player who deserves his place on centre stage; a model professional blessed with the happy knack of finding the net in crucial games, the Dutchman’s return to form could not have been more timely.
Having confessed to not being able to sleep after his diving header at Stoke City thudded against a post in the dying seconds last month, his insomnia stemming from the idea he had let Liverpool down, Kuyt has responded in fine style.
First came a double in the win over Tottenham Hotspur, then there was an opportunist strike as Bolton Wanderers were swatted aside before that crowning moment against Everton provided further evidence he is flourishing once more.
Yet, predictably, Kuyt has no desire to talk about why he has emerged from a pre-Christmas lull to prove himself an able deputy for Fernando Torres – what excites him more is the fact Liverpool’s revival suddenly has great momentum.
That revival will, of course, be sternly tested at the Emirates Stadium tomorrow night when Arsenal – smarting from back-to-back defeats against Manchester United and Chelsea – look to haul themselves off the canvas.
But similar sentiments apply to Liverpool and after becoming a derby hero for the third time – think back to clashes at Goodison Park in October 2007 and last November – Kuyt is anxious for their winning groove to continue.
“We (him, Tim Howard and Phil Neville) had a couple of fights while we were waiting for corners during the game,” reflected a man who left Anfield on Saturday clutching several bottles of champagne. “They tried to hold me and sometimes I had to give them a little push back.
“But then Stevie (Gerrard) put in such a great delivery.
“It was the perfect cross and all I had to do then was touch it a little bit to send it on its way into the goal. I’m just really happy I was in the position to do so.
“We showed again we have confidence. When we went down to 10 men, we had to believe that we could win the game. It was very difficult but we did well and it’s so encouraging that we have got 17 points from the last seven games.
“In that time we have kept six clean sheets and I think everyone can see we are playing better but we have to keep it going.
“The focus is now on Arsenal, another massive game. We enjoyed the three points on Saturday but since then it has been all about Arsenal.
“We have got a couple of very important games coming up and this will be the time when we really need to show everyone that we are capable of pushing for the top four. We need to keep the confidence going.”
Should they continue to show such fight and determination, there is reason for thinking that Liverpool might just have too much power for an Arsenal side that, for all its footballing qualities, is not known for its mental strength.
Rafa Benitez’s side have proven themselves well capable of winning wars of attrition since the turn of the year and never was that more evident than against Everton, particularly after Sotirios Kyrgiakos had been sent-off.
With two red cards and six bookings to go alongside any number of hefty tackles, some have since made the derby out to be nothing more than a glorified scrap but Kuyt, for one, is quick to point out it was anything but.
True, there were a few poor challenges but, in the main, it was an engrossing spectacle and for Liverpool to emerge from it with three points is just what Kuyt says was required ahead of further battles down the line.
“It was a mixture of relief and happiness to win,” said Kuyt.
“It is always hard when you have to play with 10 men, as we did for almost 60 minutes, but we stuck together and put a lot of effort into the game and, at the end, we deserved it.
“There were a couple of big challenges but that is what a derby game is all about.
“I’m happy to have the scars but tackles like that will always happen – that’s why they are derbies.
“Everyone was so committed but, at the end of the game, you shake hands and move on.”
Dirk Kuyt, though, is cut from a very different cloth. No matter that his header had settled the 213th Merseyside derby or brought up a half century of Liverpool goals, here was a man with no intention of milking the moment.
With a game to be won and a season to be saved, Kuyt was simply happy to join a huddle of celebrating team-mates and acknowledge the crowd with a pump of his fist before getting back down to the business of keeping an old foe quiet.
“It’s great to have scored 50 goals for the club and it’s even nicer that I managed to do it in such a special game,” said Kuyt.
“It means a lot that I have managed to do it but the main thing was for us to beat Everton.”
The irony, however, is that Kuyt is a player who deserves his place on centre stage; a model professional blessed with the happy knack of finding the net in crucial games, the Dutchman’s return to form could not have been more timely.
Having confessed to not being able to sleep after his diving header at Stoke City thudded against a post in the dying seconds last month, his insomnia stemming from the idea he had let Liverpool down, Kuyt has responded in fine style.
First came a double in the win over Tottenham Hotspur, then there was an opportunist strike as Bolton Wanderers were swatted aside before that crowning moment against Everton provided further evidence he is flourishing once more.
Yet, predictably, Kuyt has no desire to talk about why he has emerged from a pre-Christmas lull to prove himself an able deputy for Fernando Torres – what excites him more is the fact Liverpool’s revival suddenly has great momentum.
That revival will, of course, be sternly tested at the Emirates Stadium tomorrow night when Arsenal – smarting from back-to-back defeats against Manchester United and Chelsea – look to haul themselves off the canvas.
But similar sentiments apply to Liverpool and after becoming a derby hero for the third time – think back to clashes at Goodison Park in October 2007 and last November – Kuyt is anxious for their winning groove to continue.
“We (him, Tim Howard and Phil Neville) had a couple of fights while we were waiting for corners during the game,” reflected a man who left Anfield on Saturday clutching several bottles of champagne. “They tried to hold me and sometimes I had to give them a little push back.
“But then Stevie (Gerrard) put in such a great delivery.
“It was the perfect cross and all I had to do then was touch it a little bit to send it on its way into the goal. I’m just really happy I was in the position to do so.
“We showed again we have confidence. When we went down to 10 men, we had to believe that we could win the game. It was very difficult but we did well and it’s so encouraging that we have got 17 points from the last seven games.
“In that time we have kept six clean sheets and I think everyone can see we are playing better but we have to keep it going.
“The focus is now on Arsenal, another massive game. We enjoyed the three points on Saturday but since then it has been all about Arsenal.
“We have got a couple of very important games coming up and this will be the time when we really need to show everyone that we are capable of pushing for the top four. We need to keep the confidence going.”
Should they continue to show such fight and determination, there is reason for thinking that Liverpool might just have too much power for an Arsenal side that, for all its footballing qualities, is not known for its mental strength.
Rafa Benitez’s side have proven themselves well capable of winning wars of attrition since the turn of the year and never was that more evident than against Everton, particularly after Sotirios Kyrgiakos had been sent-off.
With two red cards and six bookings to go alongside any number of hefty tackles, some have since made the derby out to be nothing more than a glorified scrap but Kuyt, for one, is quick to point out it was anything but.
True, there were a few poor challenges but, in the main, it was an engrossing spectacle and for Liverpool to emerge from it with three points is just what Kuyt says was required ahead of further battles down the line.
“It was a mixture of relief and happiness to win,” said Kuyt.
“It is always hard when you have to play with 10 men, as we did for almost 60 minutes, but we stuck together and put a lot of effort into the game and, at the end, we deserved it.
“There were a couple of big challenges but that is what a derby game is all about.
“I’m happy to have the scars but tackles like that will always happen – that’s why they are derbies.
“Everyone was so committed but, at the end of the game, you shake hands and move on.”
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