Anfield Road, England Referee: Kevin Friend Attendance: 44,524
Liverpool FC 22 Simon Mignolet(SKY SPORTS)7.0 Untested for the majority of the first half but kept concentration well as Sunderland fought back. 2 Glen Johnson(SKY SPORTS)8.0 Raced down the flanks relentlessly and provided Liverpool with great width and service. 5 Daniel Agger(SKY SPORTS)7.0 Authoritative and effective as Liverpool were forced to hold out late on. 7 Luis Suarez(SKY SPORTS)8.0 Not on the scoresheet but as effective as ever, terrorising the Sunderland defence all night long. 8 Steven Gerrard(SKY SPORTS)8.0 Led by example, as ever. Strong in midfield and attack. Fired Liverpool into the lead with a fine free kick. (SKY SPORTS)9.0 At the heart of every Liverpool attack, providing pace and flare. An all-round excellent display. 14 Jordan Henderson(SKY SPORTS)8.0 Stood tall in the midfield battle and often picked out the right pass. 15 Daniel Sturridge(SKY SPORTS)8.0 Continued his prolific partnership with Luis Suarez and curled home a fine goal to double Liverpool's lead. 24 Joe Allen(SKY SPORTS)7.0 Put in the hard yards and did a lot of the unseen work, kept the engine room ticking over well. 37 Martin Skrtel(SKY SPORTS)8.0 Solid in defence and had the better of Jozy Altidore all night. 38 John Flanagan(SKY SPORTS)7.0 Tested at times but stood strong throughout and made the odd break forward.
Sunderland AFC 25 Vito Mannone(SKY SPORTS)6.0 Not as tested as many expected but made some decent saves when called upon. 2 Phil Bardsley(SKY SPORTS)7.0 Gave his all for the cause, constantly tracking the right flank. 3 Andrea Dossena(SKY SPORTS)7.0 Made strong breaks on his return to Liverpool but rarely offered the final ball. 5 Wes Brown(SKY SPORTS)7.0 An authoritative display at the heart of the Sunderland defence, making important clearances. 10 Connor Wickham(SKY SPORTS)6.0 Thrust into the spotlight after his return from loan and made some strong advances. 16 John O'Shea(SKY SPORTS)7.0 Strong defensively and could have levelled the scores late on when he met Adam Johnson's free kick. (SKY SPORTS)6.0 Crowded out more often than not and struggled to control the long ball against an imposing Liverpool defence. 23 Emanuele Giaccherini(SKY SPORTS)6.0 Found space on the flanks in the first half but was unable to get the better of the Liverpool defence. 26 Liam Bridcutt(SKY SPORTS)7.0 Picked out some fine ball and did his best to release the Sunderland forwards. 27 Santiago Vergini(SKY SPORTS)5.0 Lucky to survive a first tackle on Luis Suarez and dove in on the Uruguayan wrecklessly moments later and was again lucky to remain in play. 33 Lee Cattermole(SKY SPORTS)7.0 Stayed strong in the midfield battle and rattled the woodwork with a stinging shot.
Goals Liverpool FC (2) 39min Steven Gerrard (f.k.)
Sunderland AFC (1) 76min Ki Sung-Yueng (Adam Johnson)
Substitutions Liverpool FC 77min (IN)Raheem Sterling (OUT)Daniel Sturridge Sunderland AFC 61min (IN)Adam Johnson (OUT)Emanuele Giaccherini 61min (IN)Ki Sung-Yueng (OUT)Connor Wickham 83min (IN)Jack Colback (OUT)Andrea Dossena
Yellow cards Liverpool FC (0) None Sunderland AFC (2) 37min Santiago Vergini 40min Phil Bardsley
Red cards Liverpool FC (0) None Sunderland AFC (0) None
Shots Liverpool FC (21) Sunderland AFC (12)
Shots on targets Liverpool FC (7) Sunderland AFC (4)
Saves Liverpool FC (3) Sunderland AFC (5)
Fouls Committed Liverpool FC (5) Sunderland AFC (15)
Corners Liverpool FC (3) Sunderland AFC (4)
Offsides Liverpool FC (2) Sunderland AFC (2)
Ball possetions Liverpool FC (61%) Sunderland AFC (39%)
Sub not use Liverpool FC 9 Iago Aspas 12 Victor Moses 17 Mamadou Sakho 20 Aly Cissokho 21 Lucas Leiva 31 Raheem Sterling(SKY SPORTS)6.0 Brought plenty of energy on his introduction and helped Liverpool hold out late on. Sunderland AFC 4 Ki Sung-Yueng(SKY SPORTS)7.0 Made an immediate impact and brought Sunderland back into the game. 7 Sebastian Larsson 11 Adam Johnson(SKY SPORTS)7.0 Injected creativity alongside Sung-yueng Ki and provided the assist for Sunderland's goal. 14 Jack Colback(SKY SPORTS)5.0 Came on late and did all he could to drive Sunderland forward. 29 Valentin Roberge 30 Ignacio Scocco 32 Oscar Ustari