Liverpool striker Christian Benteke has acknowledged that he has struggled at handle the pressure of his £32.5m move from Aston Villa last summer.
Sunday’s controversial penalty against Crystal Palace was only his eighth since he moved to Anfield and Benteke revealed he had expected more from his time at Liverpool so far.
“Yeah [the price tag is] hard, because I know everything that I’m going to do people are going to talk about the money,” said the 25-year-old, who last summer became Liverpool’s second most expensive signing but has already found his future in question under Jurgen Klopp.
“But as long I’m all right with me, with myself, and I try to work hard for my team, that’s the main thing.
“It’s not the season that I was expecting, but it’s football, and you have some good times and some bad times and you have to deal with them.
“Yeah [scoring again meant a great deal], this is part of football sometimes, you have these kind of moments, and when the manager calls you you have to be ready and you have to try to contribute towards the team.
“It’s hard to say [if the goal can kick-start my Liverpool career], because football, you never know what’s going to happen. I take the minutes the manager gives me and try to fight.”
As with a lot of players, it has taken Benteke a long time to settle at Anfield. His season has been impacted by injuries which have limited him to only 12 Premier League starts this season. But his 8 goals make him Liverpool’s joint top scorer this season.
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