Full time: Sunderland 0-1 Liverpool

One more change to wind the clock down as Kolo Toure comes onto replace Firmino.

Benteke with a chance to wrap it up! Sunderland lose possession and Firmino can slide one through for the Belgian who is one-on-one with the goalkeeper. He opts to try and side it under his legs, but Mannone guesses right and makes a decent save.

Four minutes of time added on.

There are just a couple of minutes to a very poor second half remaining. Can Sunderland salvage something?

What a miss from Ibe! Firmino drives in from the left, dragging markers over before slipping a pass across to Ibe. The winger has time and space to bring it inside past Jones and pull the trigger, but he lashes a wild effort well over the bar.

Lens races down the wing chasing a loose ball and slides on Sakho trying to win the ball. It's a really meaty challenge that leaves the Liverpool defender writhing in pain and the winger is rightly shown a yellow card.

Coutinho's evening is now over, Jordon Ibe comes onto replace him.

Yedlin wins a corner that causes a bit of havoc, especially when Lovren skies a clearance straight into the air. Mignolet is blocked off as he tries to come and collect, but Liverpool eventually manage to hack it clear.

Watmore looks to run into trouble on the edge of his own box but manages to wriggle away and eventually wins a free kick off Moreno who is booked for his trouble.

Coates has now limped off injured. With O'Shea and Kaboul already out, Allardyce looks to DeAndre Yedlin who enters the fray.

Sunderland have no ideas in midfield on the break and Lucas easily pinches possession and ventures forward. Having only ever scored one Premier League goal, he doesn't fancy taking on the shot himself, shifting the ball instead to his left to Coutinho who tries his luck with a right-footed effort, but it's straight at Mannone.

Now Emre Can is down after going up for a ball with M'Vila. The Sunderland midfielder looked to have suffered the harder landing, but he's straight back up.

Sunderland (and Liverpool to be fair) are struggling to create anything at the moment. Watmore tries to force the issue and wriggle past three players, winning a free kick for his side but again the resulting free kick is wasted.

Benteke comes in from the left and looks to slide one into Coutinho who is waiting on the edge of the six yard area but sees his effort charged down by Brown.

Borini tries to break forward but is brought down by a strong challenge from Can. The German midfielder looked to have made decent contact with the ball but Sunderland are awarded the free kick and Can is booked.

Borini wriggles into space into the box and manages to avoid Lovren before clipping the ball away from Henderson to work space for a shot. It's another tame effort, however, lifting his shot straight into the arms of Mignolet.

If Lallana meant that touch through to Benteke, it was a very good one indeed.

23 seconds into the second half and we have a goal. Sunderland surrender possession and Clyne is able to thread one down the inside right channel. The pass takes the slightest nick of Lallana into the path of the Belgian, who can slot it past Mannone to give his side the lead.

Goal! Sunderland 0-1 Liverpool (Christian Benteke, 46)

And the second half is underway. Two and a half games this week and no goals. Please can we change that? Please?

Half time: Sunderland 0-0 Liverpool

Sunderland fall asleep at a corner as Coutinho feeds a simple ball into Henderson who has peeled off his man. He hammers one on goal but the home side have enough men behind the ball to make the block.

Johnson eventually takes it but it's a pretty dreadful effort, lifted woefully up and over the bar.

M'Vila lays the ball off for Defoe on the edge of the box who is clipped by Sakho. Sunderland free kick in a dangerous position.

Borini comes close! Van Aanholt slips a simple pass into Borini just inside the box and can easily turn away from Lovren who is standing off the striker. He turns and tries to curl onto into the bottom left corner but doesn't get enough on the strike, sending it just wide of the post.

A minute after coming on, Watmore harries and chases Lallana across the length of the pitch, eventually forcing him into an error and earning himself the sort of cheer you'd expect from a Sunderland goal.

Sunderland have a problem. Jack Rodwell is being forced to limp off a half an hour into this contest Duncan Watmore comes onto replace him.

It was actually a great save from Mannone that denied Firmino there; the former Arsenal goalkeeper got his finger tips on it to push it onto the post and keep this game scoreless.

What an effort from Firmino! The Brazilian looks stuck for ideas with two Sunderland markers in front of him just outside the area, but suddenly shifts the ball onto his left foot, then onto his right and powers a thunderous header on goal that bounces off the inside of the post!

I'll be honest, it hasn't been a great contest yet. Sunderland haven't looked particularly comfortable anywhere on the pitch but Liverpool haven't shown the quality in the final third to capitalise on it. Benteke picks up the game's first yellow card after blocking Mannone's goal kick.

Liverpool win a free kick about 30 yards out from goal that Coutinho likes the look of. The Brazilian bends one up and over the wall but it flies just over the bar.

Defoe comes close! Cutting in from the right, the former Spurs striker lets fly with a vicious effort but it is too close to Mignolet and the Belgian gets behind it to make a good save.

Coutinho lures Cattermole in and easily shrugs him off after recieving a pass from Lallana. The Brazilian has room to move the ball onto his right before letting fly with a shot but it veers just wide of the post. The Liverpool playmaker is finding far too much room at the moment.

Rodwell does well to work room for a shot about 25 yards out that cannons off Can and out for a corner.

Benteke is penalised for hand ball as he brings the ball down on his chest inside the Sunderland area.

Huge let of for Sunderland. Coates plays a ridiculously poor pass out of from the back straight into Coutinho who springs forward in attack. His through ball for Firmino just inside the box is perfectly weighted by his countryman's ruins it with a dreadful first touch and the ball rolls out of play.

Liverpool lob two corners into the box but can't pick their way through the Sunderland defence. It's partially cleared to Clyne who lets fly with a half volley from 30 yards out, who hammers it on target, but it's straight at Mannone.

Lallana gets the ball in acres of space on the edge of the box and is free is clip a decent cross into Benteke, who is denied a header on goal by Brown who stuck close to him.

Nearly an opening for Sunderland. Rodwell does well out on the left, sliding the ball infield to Borini who tries to thread one through for Defoe. The striker's first touch is brilliant to shift it past Lovren but Moreno is behind him providing good cover to clear.

Liverpool have control of the ball in the early stages. Lallana almost wriggles through a cluster of Sunderland shirts just inside the box with no where really to run with the ball eventually breaking to Can who overhits and wastes possession.

And Sunderland get us started at the Stadium of Light.

We are about 10 minutes away from kick off at the Stadium of Light, here's another look at the teams again.

Liverpool:

Sunderland:

Sam Allardyce is desperate to bolster his squad in the January window and it looks like he is close to making his first addition in the form of Ivory Coast international Lamine Kone. His club Lorient have confirmed they have accepted a bid from the Black Cats for the 26-year-old. Lorient vice-president Alex Hayes said

We have received an offer that we have accepted. It is now up to Lamine to find an agreement with Sunderland and to pass the medical before the transfer can be made official.

Since those back to back wins against Southampton and Stoke City in November, Sunderland have not picked up a point since, conceding 11 goals in their four league games since. They remain four points clear of rock-bottom Aston Villa, but if they don't start picking up points soon, they will soon find them cut-off from the rest of the league.

Tonight's is Jurgen Klopp's 17th game in charge of Liverpool, no. 10 in the Premier League, how has he fared so far? That victory over Leicester City on Monday was just the club's fourth league win under the German. Two of those wins came against Chelsea and Manchester City, with their three defeats coming against Newcastle United, Crystal Palace and Watford.

Sunderland have just two wins over Liverpool in their last 11 meetings. The last came in the 2011-12 season. The one before that? You'll probably remember it...

BREAKING: Wes Brown makes his first appearance of the season in the absence of captain John O'Shea.

Sunderland team to face Liverpool: Mannone, Jones, Coates, Brown, PVA, Cattermole (C), M'Vila, Rodwell, Johnson, Borini, Defoe

Subs: Pantilimon, Yedlin, Beadling, Watmore, Lens, Toivonen, Graham

BREAKING: Christian Benteke leads Liverpool's attack, Roberto Firmino returns to the staerting XI.

Liverpool team to face Sunderland: Mignolet, Clyne, Lovren, Sakho, Moreno, Can, Henderson, Lallana, Firmino, Coutinho, Benteke

Subs: Bogdan, Toure, Lucas, Ibe, Randall, Smith, Teixeira

During the week, Jurgen Klopp was hopeful Divock Origi had simply suffered a cramp during the 1-0 win over Leicester City.

I hope it's not too serious, we will see. They spoke about a little cramp," Klopp told Liverpool's official website. "You have been here longer than me; I didn't know the word before I came to England, but 'hamstring' is the worst word of the year for me. It's always hamstring, hamstring, hamstring.

"That's the intensity of the game and the fixtures. We will see. I hope it's not too serious. We have the next game in three days and six days the next, nine days the next – I hope he can play in one of these games.

They may be sat 10th ahead of kick off, but a win for Liverpool this evening could lift them up to seventh place and just five points off a Champions League spot. They will have to do that with just one striker to choose from and that will be Christian Benteke, with both Daniel Sturridge and Divock Origi stuggling with injuries.

Sunderland meanwhile are likely to be without captain John O'Shea with Younes Kaboul already an injury absentee. That leaves Wes Brown, who is likely to make his first appearance of the season at the heart of the Black Cats defence.

Sunderland meanwhile will remain in the bottom three when 2016 rings in regardless of what happens tonight. Sat second from bottom, Sam Allardyce's side can move to within two points of neighbours Newcastle United if they can clinch three points.