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In Liverpool's six games this season, they've only found the back of the net four times. Two of the goals were world-class strikes created out of nothing, and one of them was an offside goal wrongly allowed to stand. This is a huge concern for any team with top four aspirations, but it's particularly troublesome for Liverpool, who spent a considerable amount of money on their attack this summer, yet seem to have all of them same problems that they did last season.
Addressing this need for improvement, Rodgers was candid when he said:
"It’s about reinforcing the process of how we can arrive into positions where we can score goals.
"It’s about risk-taking as well. For some reason that bit of risk has gone out of our game at the moment.
"No disrespect to anyone, but we’ve missed a lot of goals and creativity in our team. It’s about ensuring we take those risks to create the game, and bring that intensity. That’s something the players have been really working hard at, and it only takes one performance to spin the season around again.
"It’s been an ongoing issue for a while now, but we will get there like we did before. When I first came in we had an issue scoring goals, but there is always a process to it, and the players coming back will enhance that quality in the team."
The players he's talking about are Adam Lallana, who returned to the team on Thursday to score against Bordeaux in their 1-1 draw, captain Jordan Henderon, and star striker, Daniel Sturridge. Sturridge has been keenly missed in the Liverpool squad, and fans and manager alike are eager to see him link up with new signings Christian Benteke and Roberto Firmino in the attack. Sturridge is back in training and is in contention for the game against Norwich on Sunday.
On Sturridge, Rodgers said:
"Daniel will do that. On his game, he’s one of the best there is. There are not too many that can compare with him when he’s at his level.
"For him it’s about getting back playing, and getting the goals. He can stretch teams with his pace, and he has wonderful variety in his finishing.
"You put Christian (Benteke) alongside him, (Philippe) Coutinho in behind that or to the side, and the other players that can support that, and it’s a really exciting dynamic, one we’ve been waiting for for quite a period of time really.
"Those types of players, with that quality, can give your team a totally different perspective."
The hope is that Daniel Sturridge can remain in the side long enough to build the kind of partnership with Christian Benteke that fans were hoping to see last season with Mario Balotelli before injuries sidelined Sturridge for the better part of the season. So far, Benteke has seemed isolated in the same way that Balotelli was, though he has still found a way to score two goals, thanks to his athleticism and sheer talent.
The next run of games will be crucial to building the team's confidence after a poor run of form, and they will need to start showing a potency in front of goal that has been sadly lacking this season.
