The Scottish coach will take charge of his first Merseyside derby since returning to the Toffees in Wednesday's (12.02.25) Premier League fixture and is aiming to try and get the club back on a level footing with their great rivals.

Moyes said: "There's a gulf between the two squads, and everyone's aware of the difficulty this club has had.

"The gap between the two teams at the moment has probably been as big as it has been for a long time. So it's something I have to bridge, and start bringing the two clubs closer together.

"But I always go back to my last two years where we finished above Liverpool in the league twice. It took us a good few years to prepare that and get us ready.

"We've got a few years to go before we're going to be ready to compete with Liverpool again."

The game - which was postponed in December because of Storm Darragh - will be the final Merseyside derby to take place at Goodison Park ahead of Everton moving into their new stadium next season and Moyes is calling for an "intimidating" atmosphere at the much-loved venue.

He said: "Goodison is a really intimidating atmosphere and difficult place to play. I've had some great nights here as a manager.

"Liverpool have always been a tough opponent, but at Goodison it has always felt much easier because we have a fantastic support behind us and this game will be no different."