AcademyMatch report: Liverpool U21s beaten by Brighton in Premier League 2
Liverpool U21s were beaten 2-1 by Brighton & Hove Albion in Premier League 2 action on Sunday afternoon.
The Reds suffered defeat on the south coast having fallen behind in just the third minute of the contest to a Joe Belmont goal.
The Seagulls then doubled their lead in the second half via Harry Howell in minute 67, though James Balagizi quickly reduced the deficit to keep the game alive.
But Liverpool were unable to find an equaliser in the time remaining at Amex Elite Performance Centre.
Head coach Barry Lewtas told Liverpoolfc.com post-match: "In fairness to Brighton, they are probably the most intense team that we have played.
"In the first half an hour they probably ran themselves into the ground a bit and maybe paid for it later in the game. They started really quick and I felt we gave them a little bit of encouragement with a few poor decisions and we encouraged it.
"To concede an early goal was disappointing, but once we weathered the storm we had numerous chances on the counter-attack and I'm sure Brighton will not have been disappointed with how sloppy we were.
"We had opportunities to finish off an attack, but we just maybe have a lack of confidence in front of goal. We just missed too many opportunities.
"[In the] second half, I felt they were always a threat on the counter-attack with some real nice kind of movements.
"In terms of the game, we carved out chances on numerous occasions. I have to give Brighton credit because I've been quite critical of our finishing, but in fairness to them if there was a shot to be had they blocked it.
"In the end it's a similar story for us and a disappointing one, but there's lots of positives for us to take into these next two games and we've just got to try to get them over the line with our finishing."
Team
Liverpool: Misciur, Mabaya, Pilling (Figueroa, 85), Nallo, Pinnington, McConnell, Nyoni (Davidson, 77), Kone-Doherty, Ngumoha, Morrison, Young (Balagizi, 49).
Unused subs: R. Trueman, Laffey.
Next up
A final home match of the season, against Leeds United in Premier League 2 on Sunday April 13, is next on Liverpool's fixture list.
Kick-off at the Kirkby Academy is set for 2pm BST.