Sunderland boss Sam Allardyce says he was not trying to wind-up Jurgen Klopp with his comments about Liverpool's recent spate of injuries.

Allardyce was quoted as saying the German might not yet understand the intensity of the Premier League and could be pushing his players too far, with Klopp brushing off those comments.

But the Sunderland boss says he did not want to cause any offence.

"If Jurgen's listening, I didn't mean to upset you or criticise your club in any way. I was just giving what I could see as maybe one of the reasons why we get injuries. Maybe I should have said, it's not for me to answer and it's up to Jurgen," he said.  

Late last month, Allardyce did say Klopp is a "big, soft German" if he thought a tackle by one of his Sunderland players on Liverpool's Mamadou Sakho during a recent encounter was a red card offence.