Sunderland scored two late goals on Saturday as strikes from Adam Johnson and Jermain Defoe rescued a point at Anfield.

Roberto Firmino and Adam Lallana had put the hosts in control, although the Black Cats rallied back in the final 10 minutes to gain a valuable point.

So, who were the instigators for the comeback and who were those responsible for the two goal deficit in the first place? Here are our player ratings.

Mixed bag at the back

Vito Mannone (7): The Italian goalkeeper produced some fantastic saves, arguably keeping Sunderland in the game.

Billy Jones (3): It was a very poor display from the right-back. Jones dwelled on the ball for too long as Firmino won the ball off the defender before setting up Lallana to double his side’s lead.

John O’Shea (7): The captain has impressed lately. O’Shea was in the right place at the right time on more than one occasion as he kept the Liverpool attack at bay.

Lamine Kone (7): It was a very good performance from Kone. The Ivorian showed how vital he could be to Sunderland’s survival hopes with some impressive defending. His reading of the game was excellent and helped clear away the danger on numerous occasions. Kone could have tracked the run of Lallana for Liverpool’s second, albeit it was the error of Jones that cost the visitors.

Patrick van Aanholt (6): The ex-Chelsea man had a glorious opportunity to find a team-mate but hit the side netting. Although he has added goals to his game in recent weeks, van Aanholt didn’t even raise his head, much to the frustration of Wahbi Khazri.

Jan Kirchhoff (5): The 25-year-old wasn’t as effective as he was in midweek. Kirchhoff lost the ball cheaply a number of times, one occasion producing a chance for Liverpool and almost a goal. Not a great afternoon for the holding midfielder.

Struggles going forward

Lee Cattermole (5): It was a bleak performance. Some vital tackles from the vice-captain but, again, he gave the ball away too many times.

Yann M’Vila (5): A similar performance to Cattermole although the Frenchman grew in confidence as the game went on. M’Vila appears to have found himself in a poor run of form after being Sunderland's star man for so long.

Yann M'Vila appears to be stuck in a rut as of late. | Photo: Getty
Yann M'Vila appears to be stuck in a rut as of late. | Photo: Getty

Duncan Watmore (5): Fabio Borini had taken ill so the youngster was given the nod. Unfortunately for Watmore, he was on the end of a heavy challenge and couldn’t recover therefore was replaced by Dame N’Doye after only 25 minutes.

Wahbi Khazri (6): The new Black Cat got an assist to his name in a good display. Khazri played the ball into the path of Defoe, before the latter turned and smashed the ball past Simon Mignolet. The Tunisian international also showed a different dimension to his game with non-stop running, forcing the opposition into mistakes.

Jermain Defoe (7): Defoe took his goal incredibly well, however, was isolated for the majority of the game as the visitors were under immense pressure.

Good impact from the bench boys

Dame N’Doye (6): Played a part in the build up of the second goal. Spent more time defending than attacking, however, just like the whole Sunderland team.

Adam Johnson (7): Scored a good free-kick to get his team back into the game, although questions were raised over the Liverpool keeper and whether or not he should have saved it.

DeAndre Yedlin (6): Did well when he came on with the home side not posing as much of a threat. Yedlin may well replace Jones for the visit of Manchester United on Saturday. 

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About the author
Peter Whalen
Sunderland AFC