Last season’s runners-up recorded just their third win of the season against West Brom on Saturday but the manager is encouraged by his squad work-rate in the 2-1 victory

Brendan Rodgers feels his Liverpool side still have much to improve upon if they are to come close to matching last season’s achievements after beating West Brom on Saturday.

Goals from Adam Lallana and Jordan Henderson saw the Reds beat Alan Irvine’s side 2-1, just their third victory of the Premier League season.

Rodgers is encouraged by Liverpool’s improvements against West Brom after showing determination to regain their lead and seal the three points after Saido Berahino’s penalty had levelled the score after Lallana’s opener, and the manager hopes to have a fully fit squad following the international break.

“Performance-wise, we’ve still got a way to go,” he told reporters. “The speed of our game, movement in our game [and] intensity in our game is still developing and improving.

“I’d rather have that now and get better and better as the season goes on, but whilst searching, it is important to find a way to win.

“The players have got remarkable character. It was a very important win for us today, hopefully we’ll come back from the international break to what we were at Tottenham with a full squad to pick from.”

Rodgers was delighted to see Henderson cap an impressive performance with the decisive goal, citing the former Sunderland man’s newfound freedom to break on as crucial.

“We gave him more licence [to get forward],” Rodgers said.

“He’s the one player in the country who can dominate the game without the football with his running capacity and his great physicality and today was about getting him forward that bit more.

“That running allows him to offer the combination with Adam for the first goal and the second he arrives in the box and finishes really, really well. It was a big performance from him today.

“He has wonderful physical capacity to run. His size surprises a lot of people, he’s got great running ability [and] lovely technique on the ball.”

Liverpool ended a run of three winless Premier League games with a battling 2-1 victory over West Brom at Anfield.

Brendan Rodgers watched his team’s slump extend to a dispiriting 1-0 UEFA Champions League loss at Basle in midweek.

Once more, Liverpool fell short of the dazzling attacking play they produced last season during the opening period on Saturday, but Adam Lallana’s superb first goal for the club on the stroke of half-time went some way to settling their nerves.

Dejan Lovren – like Lallana a close-season recruit from Southampton – fouled Saido Berahino for the in-form West Brom forward to convert a 56th-minute penalty, although replays suggested the centre-back back made contact outside the area.

But Jordan Henderson ensured parity did not last long and some of Liverpool’s old swagger returned on the back of his clinical 61st-minute finish.

Misfiring striker Mario Balotelli was dropped to the bench as Rickie Lambert came in to lead the Liverpool attack, while Costa Rica international Cristian Gamboa made a first Premier League start at right-back for West Brom with Andre Wisdom unavailable to face his parent club.

Liverpool enjoyed the better of the opening exchanges and Steven Gerrard drilled a free-kick against the West Brom wall after Sebastien Pocognoli came perilously close to fouling Henderson inside the box.

A lofted pass from Martin Skrtel gave Lambert his first sight of goal, but Ben Foster displayed razor-sharp reactions in the West Brom goal.

By the midway point of the first half, West Brom had settled comfortably into the contest and Liverpool goalkeeper Simon Mignolet saved well in the 35th minute when Berahino ran at a back-peddling home defence to unleash a vicious, swerving strike.

Berahino headed wastefully over from close range as the interval approached and his frustration was compounded as Lallana put Liverpool ahead in the final minute of the first half.

The midfielder collected a return backheel from England team-mate Henderson and displayed a deft touch and balance before firing low across Foster.

Not for the first time in the afternoon, Lovren struggled against Berahino’s speed and movement, although he was unfortunate to see referee Michael Oliver point to the spot when he clattered through the forward.

Berahino hammered home from the spot, but West Brom were only level for five minutes as Raheem Sterling regained his footing having gone to ground under Craig Gardner’s challenge and fed Henderson to slot home.

Liverpool were determined not to give their visitors another route back into the contest, with Sterling to the fore, and the winger skipped past Joleon Lescott to draw a vital block from Pocognoli before recently introduced Balotelli then lashed wide.

A wonderfully whipped cross from Chris Brunt prompted a poorly mistimed header by Berahino when well-placed, leaving him without the second goal his boundless energy perhaps deserved.

West Brom pressed in spirited fashion late on, while Foster saved with his legs in stoppage time to ensure Balotelli’s wait for a first league goal for Liverpool goes on.

Reds manager Brendan Rodgers says that the departure of Luis Suarez continues to disrupt his side after they went a month of Premier League action without a victory

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers feels that his side head into Saturday’s Premier League clash with West Brom locked in a period of transition.

The Reds failed to win in the top flight during September and enter this game off the back of a disappointing 1-0 loss to Basel in the Champions League.

It leaves last season’s Premier League runners-up in 14th with just seven points from their first six games and Rodgers feels that the departure of Luis Suarez to Barcelona has left a major void, particularly with Daniel Sturridge having missed a month with injury.

“There was big change in the summer and we lost a world-class player,” Rodgers explained to reporters on Thursday. “We had to improve the squad and unfortunately we are in a period of transition again.

“It was difficult in my first few months but there was a vision that came through that.

“We know [Saturday] will be a tough game. They’ve got some very good players but, at home, we expect to win.”

Sturridge’s injury has sparked a club-versus-country row but the striker may return to action at Anfield, despite being left out of England’s squad to face San Marino and Estonia, after Rodgers claimed that he could “be available for some involvement”.

However, Rodgers will be without Mamadou Sakho (thigh), Joe Allen (knee), Emre Can (ankle), Glen Johnson (thigh) and Jon Flanagan (knee).

While Liverpool have work to do to get their season up and running, West Brom appear to be making headway under Alan Irvine after a tricky start.

Irvine had to wait until the fifth league game of the season in for his first win but the Baggies go into the fixture at Anfield following three consecutive victories. A narrow 1-0 win over Tottenham at White Hart Lane was followed up by Capital One Cup progression against Hull City before a resounding 4-0 rout of Burnley.

Saido Berahino has been at the heart of their upturn in form with three goals in his last two games and Irvine wants the England Under-21s international to keep it up on Merseyside. Despite speculation over a senior call-up, Berahino was not drafted into Roy Hodgson’s squad, although his manager is confident that will not knock him off course.

“Saido’s a very good professional so I can’t see him getting carried away if he does get selected at full international level,” Irvine explained.

“Saido’s time will come. He may will be disappointed but I don’t know. He might have been hoping after a lot of speculation this week but he’ll handle all of that mentally – he’s in a really good place.”

Irvine is without Silvestre Varela (hernia), Brown Ideye (ankle) and Victor Anichebe (groin), while on-loan defender Andre Wisdom cannot face his parent club.