Virgil van Dijk admits that Liverpool lacked calmness on the ball after they squeezed past struggling Fulham 2-1 at Craven Cottage.
The Reds were tipped to make short work of a Cottagers side that had conceded 68 goals and look set to be playing Championship football next season.
Jurgen Klopp's side took the lead in the capital with 26 minutes on the clock and dominated the first half, though failed to add to their advantage.
Liverpool were then shaken in the 74th minute when a big defensive mix-up between goalkeeper Alisson and Van Dijk left Ryan Babel with a comfortable finish to level the match.
But the Reds bounced back, with James Milner converting from the penalty spot in the 81st minute after Sergio Rico fouled Mane.
Liverpool had the 2-1 win and Van Dijk admits he should not have made his mistake.
He told Sky Sports after the match: "I am not giving excuses. I should have handled it better.
"They scored but so did we and we have three points and move back to the top of the table."
Van Dijk feels that Liverpool lacked composure in their play and made hard work of the victory, but is happy to head into the international break with a win and back at the top of the league.
"We knew it would be tough. We made it difficult for ourselves.
"We weren't calm on the ball.
"We got the three points though and we can now focus on the national teams."
Liverpool now boast a two-point lead over Manchester City, who were not in action this weekend.
