London: Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp praised the character of his Premier League leaders after a first-half double from Virgil van Dijk lifted them 11 points clear despite the sending off of goalkeeper Alisson Becker in a 2-1 win over Brighton on Saturday. The Brazilian was dismissed on 76 minutes as he raced out of his area to handle an attempted chip by Brighton substitute Leandro Trossard. Spanish replacement Adrian came on but his first act was to pick the ball out of the net as Lewis Dunk rolled the free-kick past the Liverpool wall and an unprepared goalkeeper, setting up an anxious finale for the home side.

"We brought on a frozen goalkeeper," said Klopp. "Everybody sitting here is probably not warm yet so imagine you go out there in shorts, and really thin shirt and gloves that are not for keeping you warm! "Then some people let the free-kick happen like that, like a little bit sleepy. "But we kept fighting -- Adrian especially helped us with two really good saves but with cold feet he couldn't kick the ball as far as he wanted." There was more drama, and anxiety from home supporters dreaming of seeing their team win a first league title in 30 years, in the closing stages. Adrian saved well from a fierce Aaron Mooy shot before the Spanish keeper almost fumbled a Pascal Gross header over his own goalline.