Johnson was among seven derby debutants at the weekend, with team-mates Emiliano Insua and David Ngog and Everton quartet Sylvain Distin, Lucas Neill, John Heitinga and Diniyar Bilyaletdinov the others.

“It was fantastic to play in my first derby and the result was even better; it’s great to get off to a winning start,” said the right-back. “We knew they were going to come at us at 100 miles an hour.

“It’s a great atmosphere when you come to Goodison for a game like this. Obviously they hate us, so that makes it even better when we beat them.

“It’s up there with the biggest games I have played in. It’s arguably the biggest derby in the Premier League and it’s great to beat them.”

Johnson also believes goalkeeper Pepe Reina’s remarkable double stop to deny Tim Cahill and Marouane Fellaini could prove a turning point in Liverpool’s season.

“That save was amazing,” said the England international. “With it being 1-0 at the time, if either Cahill or Fellaini had scored, it could have been a different story.

“Pepe is one of the best in the business, there’s no disputing that. He’s a Spanish international on merit and deserves (recognition) every time that he plays.

“He’s certainly one of the best that I have ever played with. He’s got so much to his game, he’s really good with his feet and you can see him in training.

“That’s what the modern goalkeeper needs. He’s quick and agile and makes great saves like that; it was a turning point in the game and it could be a turning point in the season.”