Middlesbrough’s final game of a really difficult season ended in a 3-0 defeat as Liverpool confirmed their Champions League return.
Georginio Wijnaldum struck in first-half added time and Philippe Coutinho’s free-kick added another soon after the break.
Five minutes later England international Adam Lallana increased the suffering on the already relegated visitors.
Having passed a pre-match fitness check, Firminho immediately called Brad Guzan into action with a low drive.
Rudy Gestede headed Stewart Downing’s cross wide after Patrick Bamford had earlier appeared to be caught by Dejan Lovren inside the area. Daniel Sturridge’s reply was in turn narrowly wide.
But the hosts still broke through just as it seemed Boro would go in level at the interval, when Wijnaldum was allowed too much space and crashed home.
That advantage was doubled by Coutinho’s whipped free-kick into the far corner early in the second-half, before Lallana soon further improved the scoreline on the break.
Adam Forshaw had a reply deflected wide and Bamford’s header forced goalkeeper Simon Mignolet to react, while Sturridge later curled an effort over for the hosts as they continued in the ascendancy.
Liverpool: Mignolet, Clyne, Matip, Lovren, Milner (Moreno 86), Can, Wijnaldum, Coutinho, Lallana, Firmino (Lucas 79), Sturridge (Origi 82)
subs (unused): Karius, Grujic, Klavan, Alexander-Arnold
Goals: Wijnaldum (45), Coutinho (51), Lallana (56)
Middlesbrough: Guzan, Fabio (Ayala 73), Chambers, Gibson, Friend, Clayton, Leadbitter, Forshaw, Downing, Bamford, Gestede (Negredo 73)
subs (unused): Konstantopoulos, Bernardo, De Roon, Fischer, Stuani
Ref: M. Atkinson
Att: 53,191
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