Defeat for young Reds against Sacramento Republic
Liverpool U21s' post-season tour of the United States got under way with a narrow defeat to Sacramento Republic on Saturday.
The young Reds were beaten 2-1 at Bonney Field in a game that saw former Academy forward Daniel Trickett-Smith make his debut for the hosts.
Liverpool found themselves behind with half an hour on the clock as Agustin Cazarez smashed home after the ball was cleverly headed into his path.
Sacramento had chances to build on their lead in the second period, but were kept at bay by some resolute defending and the reflexes of visiting 'keeper Lawrence Vigouroux.
And it looked like the Reds had claimed a draw against experienced opposition with just 15 minutes remaining.
Herbie Kane dropped into space and picked out the run of Ryan Kent, who finished coolly one-on-one to restore parity.
There was to be another twist in the tale, however, as James Kiffe's fine dribble and powerful shot ensured victory for Sacramento with just five minutes of normal time left to play.
After the game, U21s coach Michael Beale said: "We only flew in a couple of days ago and it's a really young team so I thought Sacramento settled into the game much better than us and they played well first half.
"We made some adjustments second half and made the game really exciting, keeping our forwards up the pitch a little bit more.
"We scored a really good goal second half and then to be fair maybe a little of inexperience showed but now we'll look to reverse that score next week."
The sides will now play out a rematch in Reno on Wednesday as the U21s' tour concludes.