Liverpool coach says fan protest did not cause collapse against Sunderland

Liverpool coach Pep Lijnders said a supporter protest did not contribute to a late collapse against Sunderland at Anfield.

The home side were 2-0 up through goals from Roberto Firmino and Adam Lallana when a significant number of fans carried out a plan to walk out in the 77th minute in a protest at next season's ticket prices.

Sunderland went on to score twice in the final eight minutes and deny Liverpool a first win in four games in the absence of their unwell manager Jurgen Klopp.

But Lijnders denied that the mass exit made a difference and claimed the result did not reflect the Reds' performance.

"I don't think so," he said. "That's my personal opinion. We have one of the best supporter groups in the world, so if they want to make a statement they have the right to make a statement.

"That didn't influence at all our confidence or our way of playing.

"[The result is] disappointing but there's a big 'but'. The scoreboard never lies, but today it did a little bit because we dominated the game.

"We played for 82 minutes good and we became better throughout the game. It's difficult straight after to make an evaluation, but in my opinion what we did for 82 minutes was excellent."

Sunderland's first goal was an Adam Johnson free-kick that squirmed through Simon Mignolet's attempted save after Alberto Moreno had fouled Wahbi Khazri.

Lijnders disputed the award and cleared Mignolet of blame, saying: "It's never easy when the ball goes really down and bounces before the line."

And he gave an update on Klopp's condition, saying: "He's doing well. He couldn't be here today but it was a relief we knew he was okay."

Live Ford Super Sunday