Rodgers glad he did not hook Liverpool match-winner Coutinho

That would be at odds with manager Rodgers’ philosophy which is built upon incisive, possession-based football but the 29-year-old England worldwide says the players have to adapt to different styles of play.

Philippe Coutinho’s 86th minute stunning long-range strike gave the Reds the flawless start as they also avenged last May’s 6-1 defeat at the Britannia Stadium.

Ultimately he is likely to feature in the heart of the defence, potentially alongside a player like Tiago Ilori if the young Portuguese can seize his chance as Gomez has done so emphatically.

Jordan Henderson, the new club captain featured alongside summer signing James Milner on Sunday.

“It’s hard for the guys to accept the result today because we were very even, and I didn’t think they created anything of any real note today”. It was a tough game, it was a battle.

One thing is for sure though, Coutinho has definitely proved his worth with that game winning goal and put Liverpool on the right path.

“To get a win and perform from where we were 11 weeks ago – I thought it was an outstanding collective performance”. Very”, said Rodgers. “I can’t profess to be a genius.

The Brazil global is some weeks behind most of his team-mates in terms of fitness having joined pre-season late because of the Copa America. With Raheem Sterling off to pastures more glamorous and lucrative, Liverpool will need their star man to be on form this season if they are to get anywhere near the ridiculously high standards that some of their fans set for the club.

Liverpool collected four yellow cards in the game – majority out of frustration. We know the qualities Benteke has and once the season goes on and the more he can get to know his new team-mates, he’ll be fine. It was a one-off game, a unique game, but it still happened.

In truth, it had been a scrappy game and Liverpool had to roll their sleeves up and fight for the result.

At the other end, Benteke showed glimpses of some good link-up play with Coutinho but looked isolated for the majority of the game, a number of wayward crosses in his direction never in any danger of troubling Stoke’s goal.