Jurgen Klopp's assistant manager pleased with Liverpool's performance against RB Salzburg

Liverpool secured a 1-0 victory over RB Salzburg in the first leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie on Wednesday night. The Reds were far from their best, but they managed to grind out a win thanks to a goal from Sadio Mane in the second half.

Assistant manager Pepijn Lijnders was pleased with Liverpool's performance, despite their lack of fluency. He said: "We are very proud of the boys. They showed great character and determination. We didn't play our best football, but we found a way to win. That's the most important thing."

Liverpool made a slow start to the game and were fortunate not to concede in the opening minutes. Salzburg had a number of good chances, but they were unable to find the back of the net. Liverpool gradually grew into the game and started to create chances of their own. Mane had a great chance to open the scoring in the first half, but he fired wide. He made amends for that miss in the second half, however, when he scored the winning goal from close range.

Liverpool will take a slender lead into the second leg of their tie against Salzburg. The Reds will be confident of finishing the job at Anfield, but they will need to improve their performance if they want to avoid an upset.