#2 Sunderland seemed more fluid than Liverpool in the opening exchanges
The energy of the crowd filtered on to the pitch as Sunderland took the game to their opponents. David Moyes fielded a side which was keen on attacking with Borini and Januzaj assisting Defoe upfront. The trio put in a tireless shift as they combined their defensive duties with their attacking instincts.
Maybe it was sluggishness from the earlier game, but Liverpool took time to get into their groove. Initially, they were overrun in the centre of the field for the majority of the first half as Sunderland looked to make their dominance count. Ndong found space on the edge of the Liverpool box and looked to snake his way past the defence, where he was upended by Klavan.
Anthony Taylor had no hesitation in pointing towards the spot and up stepped Defoe to draw Sunderland level. At the time, it was a deserved reward for the drive and determination they had shown to take the game to their opponents.
Although Sunderland did take their foot off the gas in the second half, Vito Mannone denied the Liverpool forwards from increasing their lead. Moyes though will be delighted with the fluidity of the performance in the first half and the result will also give him a reason to smile after the Burnley loss on Saturday.
