The Reds striker believes Liverpool’s players have to start to show their qualities
It was only a few weeks ago that Liverpool were busy thrashing top-4 rivals Southampton 6-1 in the Capital One Cup, but it suddenly feels very far away, following a run of 1 draw and 2 defeats in games that really should’ve yielded maximum points.
Against Watford on Sunday, Liverpool put in their worst performance since Jurgen Klopp took over, looking like a group of players that barely knew one another.
But with a quick run of Premier League games over the next 10 days, there is the chance for many of the players that have let the fans and manager down in recent weeks (at least in part) to redeem themselves, starting on Boxing Day.
And Reds striker Christian Benteke has spoken about how the players must show their quality and start getting results.
Speaking to Liverpoolfc.com, Benteke said: “It’s a special period because you have Christmas and New Year and a lot of games coming up.
“It’s a chance for us to win some games.
“Everyone knows that we have a very big squad with a lot of quality. We have to try to put that quality together.”
Whilst Benteke was involved in only a short amount of the game on Sunday, he has taken a fair bit of criticism himself of late, for what is either perceived as a bit of laziness/rustiness due to injury to struggling to fit in. Or he is simply not the right fit for the way Klopp plays.
But after the Firmino horror show on Sunday, it’s highly likely that Liverpool will look to combat Leicester’s own strong, physical attack with one of their own, meaning Benteke will likely start.
The striker continued: “They won’t just sit back and wait for a mistake.
“They will want to play and show that they have the quality to play. That’s why they’re first in the league.
“The Premier League is the strongest league in the world. You can see this year it’s really strong.
“Of course we have to respect them but when we play them we have to do everything to try to get the three points.
“I’m feeling good and I want to play because it’s a big game. But it’s up to the manager and I respect his decision.”
With the possibility of picking up 12 points between Boxing Day and 5th January, the Premier League could present Liverpool with a very different proposition come the start of 2016, but Liverpool’s highly paid, top-bracket signings like Benteke will have to start pulling their collective weight.
