Jurgen Klopp has called for controlled aggression from his Liverpool side when they come up against Everton on Saturday in a match that will prompt "the world to stop in the city for 90 minutes".
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The Reds go into the Anfield contest six points and three places above Ronald Koeman's men and victory will strengthen Liverpool's Champions League hopes.
With so much at stake, Klopp is wary of emotion getting the better of his players in what will be a frantic atmosphere.
He told reporters: "I am not skilled in many parts of life but maybe I am a genius in understanding derbies because I didn't need a second to understand this.
"The world stops for 90 minutes in a city. Football is not the most important thing in the world but in a few moments we love to think it is.
"There are not too many other cities around the world with two clubs of this size and importance. These are the games you look forward to.
"[We need to] be aggressive, but not too aggressive and fight for everything to try to make our supporters happy."
Klopp on the derby: "I didn't need a second to understand how important this game is. Tomorrow the world stops for 90 minutes in a city." pic.twitter.com/NRrn8C2cWJ
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) March 31, 2017
The German, however, is wary of a resurgent Everton side that have lost just one of their last 12 Premier League fixtures.
"They have a really good team," he added. "[They] made good transfers in the summer and winter. They didn't have a fantastic start to the season, but now they are absolutely back on track. They are close to where they want to be.
"They look really confident. But I cannot imagine one reason why we shouldn't be confident too.
"Everton is a good team and have had a really good run. But we are Liverpool, we play at Anfield and nobody should underestimate the power of Anfield."
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The main Everton threat will come from Belgium striker Romelu Lukaku, the leading scorer in the top flight with 21 goals.
Klopp said: "I like him, he is a very good striker, he has our respect.
"[But] he needs passes, support from other players. My main thing is how can we avoid this?"