Christian Benteke

[Mattshark]

I don't think he's ever going to convince me. Being a brilliant goalscorer and / or scorer of brilliant goals - and nothing else - is fine for mid-table sides but we demand more of a centre forward. I think we've scored six goals in the eight league games he's started. Also saw a stat - not sure if it's right - that we've only scored more than 1 with Benteke in the side once.

He should be benched for a good while now. I'd rather go with Firmino as a false 9 if Sturridge and Origi aren't fit.

[Robbie-9-Fowler]

Simply doesn't make enough if any effort to get into the box, for a striker that's criminal.

He trotts in, its not going to work unless he changes that.

Strangely when we had them pinned in towards the end of the game was when we needed him most just to be a target to keep the ball alive.

I thought with Sturridge returning we'd have saw him fired up, I guess its just not him.

[Kenneth]

It's such a shame, because we pretty much all saw it coming to one extent or another before we dumped 30 odd million on him.

And Origi is pants, which we also knew in the summer based on the season before. We now have goals from MF in our squad but below par strikers overall.

[Kenneth]

Yep that's the one that sticks out and the most obvious during the match. He seems incredibly lazy. Very unimpressed.

I'm not sure he could have reached that even at full tilt to be honest. But the fact he didn't try doesn't look good.

[Fan65]

And this weeks scapegoat for the teams performance is...... Benteke !!!!!

Feel free to rip into him because next week it'll be someone else's turn

[gratziani]

I would say people are more cheesed off with his performance or lack of it than anything else.

When you spend 32 Million on someone and Firmino comes into this as well you are kind of hoping for the finished article.

Not someone who put a 4 out of 10 in against a team that have been **** for most of the season.

[vlahka]

Yep that's the one that sticks out and the most obvious during the match. He seems incredibly lazy. Very unimpressed.

Benteke jogging happily there is a real pain to watch. But I think that pass was aimed at Milner. Moreno would of seen him dashing and instead chipped it in like he would have been expecting him to be there akin to Suarez/sturridge etc.. Sadly Milner is slow and useless and decided to run out wide, because thats the best area to score from.

[Mattshark]

And this weeks scapegoat for the teams performance is...... Benteke !!!!!

Feel free to rip into him because next week it'll be someone else's turn

It is not that at all. The issue is the lack of an alround game from him whether it be poor movement, inability to take players on or poor passing. No one will deny he is a good finisher. But we have looked a much better and more coherent side without him because he, at present, lacks the tools to be a top level player.

[Daniel 7]

Oh, I meant to write my last post in here. Basically, his grace period for acclimatisation to Liverpool is up, and he should be busting a gut, rather than moodily skulking around the edge of the box waiting for something to happen.

He's just not dynamic enough - we have been spoiled over the years with brilliant strikers, but we have also seen flat footed garbage too. On current displays, he's closer to the latter unfortunately.

[Fosterbloke]

Barca paid just over the amount we paid for Carroll + Benteke.

[Fierce]

Barca paid just over the amount we paid for Carroll + Benteke.

[Mattshark]

Benteke made a total of 2 success forward passes all game and had a pass accuracy of 55%.

[Irishnev]

Benteke made a total of 2 success forward passes all game and had a pass accuracy of 55%.

2 kick offs perhaps?

[Exiled_red]

Benteke made a total of 2 success forward passes all game and had a pass accuracy of 55%.

That isn't necessarily his fault though, as the player leading the line presumably most of the time he is the furthest player forward, most of his passes will therefore be backwards (or sideways). He will only play a forward pass when someone runs beyond him, if no-one is running past him he won't make forward passes.

Were players running beyond him and he wasn't playing the ball to them, were players not running beyond him or are we wanting him to drop deeper so that he can play more forward passes? I'm not really sure what that stat tells us.

The 55% accuracy is worrying though.

[kubrickscube]

He's not a creative player - he gets chances and generally puts them away. How often has he played with the same attackers and midfielders? It can't help his game when the players behind him keep changing.