Liverpool attack enthuses Rodgers

The Liverpool manager hopes his side can return to their attacking best, having bolstered their forward ranks in the transfer window.

Roberto Firmino and Danny Ings have already moved to Anfield from Hoffenheim and Burnley respectively, with Aston Villa striker Benteke widely expected to join them.

Though Rodgers would not be drawn on reports that Liverpool have activated Benteke's £32.5million release clause in order to bring him in, the Anfield boss anticipates his side will return to the free-scoring form that saw them challenge for the Premier League title two season ago.

He said: "Of course, the season when we were runners-up we ended up with 101 goals. Last year we didn't score enough goals.

"But this is a new team; the ideas and philosophies are the same but we're bringing in players that can really threaten the goal again and have a group of those. That's something that's exciting me.

"Young Firmino coming in has got experience of European football and is just starting to make his mark on the Brazilian squad and is a player on the way up."

The coming season will also be Liverpool's first without former captain Steven Gerrard in 17 years, with Jordan Henderson taking over the armband.

Rodgers added: "Jordan is taking over from an iconic figure who had been captain here a long time.

"I think the players have really accepted it and responded well to it. I can see already how he's grown in terms of his stature.

"That's important because you can give some guys the captaincy and they fold with it. It can have a negative effect. But he's a young man who can cope with that.