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Captain Jordan Henderson believes Liverpool’s gutsy Merseyside derby triumph showed another side to Jurgen Klopp’s title challengers.

Sadio Mane’s dramatic late strike ensured it was the first time the Reds had won a Premier League game 1-0 in 36 matches dating back to last December.

Liverpool were far from their fluent best but their resilience shone through as they dealt with an early onslaught from Everton and got stronger the longer the evening went on.

Defensive frailties have cost Klopp’s men at times this term but they go into Tuesday’s Anfield clash with Stoke City buoyed by back-to-back clean sheets.

“It was a big plus for us,” Henderson said.

“We were very pleased with how we won at Goodison. It’s always good to go there and get three points.

“We defended solidly as a team, we won the ball back quickly and we kept a clean sheet.

“It was a bit hectic in the first half, a typical derby game, fast and wild. But I felt we dealt with that pretty well. The performance was good, especially the second half where I felt we dominated.

“We have looked very solid in the last couple of games. It’s always a tough game at Goodison so to play like we did was pleasing.

“We gave everything for the 90 minutes and defended really well as a team.”

Victory at Goodison enabled the Reds to reduce Chelsea’s lead at the top of the Premier League to six points.

The Londoners, who have won 11 successive league matches, entertain Bournemouth on Boxing Day - 24 hours before Liverpool host Stoke.

The visit of Mark Hughes’ side starts a gruelling run of three games in the space of just six days for the Reds.

Henderson wants a nine-point haul to ensure they crank up the pressure on pace-setters Chelsea.

“That’s the aim,” he added.

“Every game we go into we want to get three points because we feel we are a good team who are good enough to beat anyone.

“The aim is to keep performing and winning games. It is important, it doesn’t matter what time of year it is.

“I know people say it’s Christmas and there are a lot of games but there are the same amount of games come the end of the season so it doesn’t make a difference.

“We take each game as it comes, three points is the aim and we’ll see where we are at the end of the season.”