ROY HODGSON believes expectations placed upon his Liverpool side are too high at present.

The Anfield manager was pleased with Saturday’s 2-2 home draw against Sunderland and felt his team were unfortunate not to have claimed a much-needed victory.

Hodgson insists patience is required as a clutch of new recruits find their feet in the Premier League and within the structure of the Liverpool team but says he saw flashes of promise over the weekend. Follow our LFC Twitter stream, for the latest news updates.

Hodgson is adamant suggestions before kick-off that Liverpool should have beaten Steve Bruce’s men were dismissive of the opposition, but has backed the home supporters to be understanding as it will take time for the side to reach their potential. The draw takes Liverpool onto six points from their six league games so far this campaign to leave them in 16th position in the table but Hodgson remains upbeat.

“The expectations being placed on the team are ones they will find very hard to live up to until they bed in as a team,” said Hodgson.

“It’s more a case of using certain players in certain positions in certain games to get them to the position I want.

“It’s them finding their legs as Liverpool players and me finding where best to use them, but we are going to see a very tight league this year.

“The understanding will of course only come from games, and we’re all coming to terms with the expectations.