Brendan Rodgers found himself a happy man in regards to his summer recruits after Liverpool’s 1-0 victory over Bournemouth in the side’s first match of the season in front of the Kop.
Christian Benteke’s 26th minute strike was enough to secure the points for the Reds, who were lucky not to be a goal down early on when Tommy Elphick had a goal chalked off for the visitors.
There was also more than a touch of fortune about the Belgian’s winner, as Philippe Coutinho was in an offside position when the ball came into the box.
In speaking with Liverpoolfc.com, Rodgers raved about the new signings performed on their respective Anfield debuts.
“I thought James Milner was outstanding,” said Rodgers. “Nathaniel Clyne you can see is such a good defender and wants to get forward and the young boy, Joe Gomez, at 18 years of age this is a big step up for him, but he’s coping very well.”
Match winner Benteke was lauded for more than just his goal.
“Benteke will be disappointed he didn’t get two goals, but he got off the mark and his all-round play was excellent,” the Ulsterman added.
Benteke, of course, hit the woodwork in the dying minutes of proceedings.
Rodgers explained why he elected to field the same team that travelled to Stoke and came back with all three points.
“It’s about picking the best team to get the points and they played very well,” said the 42-year-old. “It was as much about the team that finished [the game] – Alberto Moreno came into the game and was excellent, giving good cover for Joe Gomez on the left side.”
Liverpool travel to the Emirates Stadium to play Arsenal on Monday.
