Pepijn Lijnders believes the scoreline was deceiving after Liverpool's 2-2 draw with Sunderland on Saturday and felt their performance warranted more than a point.
The Reds boasted a comfortable two-goal cushion with 10 minutes to go, thanks to a goal and an assist from Roberto Firmino, who set up Adam Lallana for the Reds' second.
But they capitulated in spectacular fashion to squander the three points, Simon Mignolet fumbling Adam Johnson's low free-kick into his own net at the Kop end.
Boosted by their late hope, Jermain Defoe completed the comeback in the dying minutes, turning in the box and firing past Mignolet to seal an unlikely point.
First-team development coach Lijnders took on a more prominent role with Jürgen Klopp absent from the dugout after having to undergo an operation to deal with a bout of appendicitis.
It was the 32-year-old who took over Klopp's post-match press conference duties, and he felt that they could be pleased with their side's performance until the late surrender.
Reds "dropped off too much" late on, says Lijnders
"Normally, the scoreboard doesn't lie," he declared, addressing the media inside Anfield after full-time, saying that: "Today, it did, in my opinion."
The Dutchman said that the Reds "played really well" for 82 minutes and got "better throughout the game" and "especially" after the first goal, and admitted they felt they "needed a goal to make the combinations [between players] quicker and to move the ball clear into the final third."
Lijnders, who has previously worked with PSV Eindhoven and FC Porto, added that Liverpool "were good" and said they "dominated the game, could always find the free player and moved the ball from left to right to open them [Sunderland] up and create spaces between the lines."
He explained that in normal situations, "if you score early then the game gets easier" but said that in the final 10 minutes they "dropped off too much and let them play longer balls [up the field]" and insisted that they were "closer to our goal" after the long balls, hence why the free-kick for Sunderland's first "is in that position instead of 20-yards higher up the pitch."
Lijnders added that he felt they were "in control of the game" but acknowledged that "one moment [the first goal] changes everything" and that when there was still "eight to 10 minutes where you have to be calm and play" as well as continuing to move the ball "into the final third, so when you lose it you can counter-press and stay higher up the pitch" they were not controlled enough to sustain the draw.
Reds must work on getting it right in goalscoring situations, insists Dutchman
It was another frustrating afternoon at both ends of the pitch, as Liverpool conceded from their only two shots conceded on target whilst Vito Mannone was on hand to prevent the hosts building to their lead.
The Black Cats shotstopper denied goalscorer Lallana, as well as making saves from Jordon Ibe and Alberto Moreno earlier in the game.
Having shown the tendency to blow hot-and-cold in the final third in recent games, with Firmino's opener their first goal in nearly six hours of football, Lijnders called upon the team to show more composure in potential goalscoring situations.
The highly-regarded coach, who has only been on Merseyside since August 2014, insists they "dominated in the opponents' half" and took the positives from "the way we were able after each loss of possession to win the ball back in a short period, then again find a free player and keep the ball for longer periods."
But he acknowledged there were holes to pick in their performance, saying that "the amount of moments we get in between the lines and in the final third, we have to stay calmer and use our skill more to outplay opponents."
Lijnders added they must "risk" and "play through the pass" and said there was less anxiety in the final 10 minutes after Sunderland made it 2-1, as opposed to what they showed "in the final third."
He said that looking at it "from a performance point of view" and "how we analyse different lines [and] sectors" then "it was OK" but accepted, "the problem was the game wasn't 82 minutes, it was 95."
Liverpool waiting on Allen and Lovren updates
The Reds were dealt early setbacks in the first-half when Dejan Lovren and Joe Allen were both forced off through injury to be replaced by Kolo Touré and Jordon Ibe.
Issuing an update on their fitness, Lijnders explained that Lovren "felt cramp two or three times in the same position [of the body]" and insisted that it was only "very light" so it was "just a precaution" to avoid aggravating "the same spot."
On Allen, he said that he was "fatigued just before half-time" and said the scans will "show what comes out of that" in the coming days, after the Welsh midfielder was withdrawn appearing to feel his hamstring.
Klopp, meanwhile, successfuly underwent an operation on his appendix and was informed of the full-time result after waking up at Aintree hospital.
Coach says fans' exodus didn't affect players
Much of the game's attention was turned to the fact the club's supporters engineered a first walk-out protest in its' 124-year history, leaving in their droves in the 77th minute to demonstrate their displeasure at plans to increase ticket prices from next season.
With the performance levels dropping, costing Liverpool two points in the process, many attributed the protest to the fact they lost control of the game and ended up drawing.
But Lijnders dismissed any kind of relationship between the two matters, despite as many as 10,000 supporters leaving their seats well before the final whistle, saying the players were not affected by fans leaving.
He vowed that they have "one of the best supporter groups in the world and over the world" and said that if they "want to make a statement [then] they have all the right to."
"Of course it didn't affect the players," he added, saying that whilst it "probably changed the atmosphere in the stadium" it did not affect "the mentality of the players."
Lijnders added they have "a group of players who are young" and a group with "loads of individual quality" and also "loads of individual potential" and said it is up to the backroom staff "to create a style" that "all these individuals and the collect gets further developed", with winning "a logical result of development" which he says they "truly believe."