Liverpool fans react on Twitter to Dejan Lovren's performance, highlight Klopp's influence

Liverpool picked up a controversial victory on Sunday afternoon, as they beat Crystal Palace 2-1 at Selhurst Park thanks to Christian Benteke's late penalty.

The Reds were coming into the game off the back of a superb 3-0 win over Manchester City in midweek, but fell behind early into the second half against Palace, as Joe Ledley opened the scoring before James Milner was sent off for Liverpool, giving them a tough task with just ten men.

However, Roberto Firmino capitalised on Alex McCarthy's poor kick, sliding the ball home after a costly error from the Palace goalkeeper - and then the match became shrouded in controversy.

Christian Benteke went down under minimal contact from Palace defender Damien Delaney, and the referee awarded Liverpool an injury-time penalty, which Benteke stepped up to score, handing Jurgen Klopp's men a 96th minute winner.

The Benteke situation has been dominating the post-match conversation, but Liverpool fans instead focused on the performance of defender Dejan Lovren.

The Croatian international has been inconsistent at the best of times since signing from Southampton back in the summer of 2014, but he enjoyed a superb performance against Palace on Sunday.

Liverpool fans took to Twitter to praise Lovren, suggesting that it was the centre back's best performance for the club so far, and looked forward to his partnership with imminent signing Joel Matip, who arrives from Schalke this summer.

Supporters also noted that Lovren has improved since Klopp replaced Brendan Rodgers as Liverpool boss back in October, and believe he is finally repaying the fee Liverpool paid for him almost two years ago.

Here are some of the reactions from Liverpool fans on Twitter after Lovren's performance against Crystal Palace on Sunday...

Man of the Match: Lovren & Can share fans’ award after Crystal Palace comeback

As Liverpool battled back to win 2-1 away to Crystal Palace on Sunday afternoon, Dejan Lovren and Emre Can were the players to stand out.

Despite conceding a goal early on in the second half at Selhurst Park, with Joe Ledley powering home a loose ball, Liverpool produced a resolute defensive display in Sunday’s 2-1 victory.

This included strong turns from Lovren, alongside Mamadou Sakho at centre-back, and Can, who shone in his role at the heart of the midfield.

These dominant showings earned Lovren and Can a shared Man of the Match award as supporters rated Liverpool’s performances after the game.

The pair currently boast a rating of 7.8 each, 0.6 more than any player.

Match-winner Christian Benteke, who won and converted the deciding penalty at the death, comes closest to Lovren and Can, rated at 7.3, showing intent in a central attacking role.

Just behind Benteke comes the striker’s compatriot, Simon Mignolet, with 7.2, and fellow forward Roberto Firmino, with 7.1.

Remarkably, no other player has been rated above 6.9, with Adam Lallana‘s 6.3, Alberto Moreno‘s 6.2 and Divock Origi‘s 6.5 perhaps an indication of the changing landscape of the contest.

Sent off on the hour mark, after two yellow-card offences, James Milner is currently rated at a dismal 4.1, while his midfield colleague, Jordan Henderson, has a rating of 5.2.

Jurgen Klopp‘s starting lineup are rated at an average of 6.4, 1.4 below their average rating from Wednesday night’s 3-0 win at home to Manchester City.

But with the likes of Can and Lovren in a defiant mood at Selhurst Park, Liverpool were able to battle to victory.