Klopp not concerned by Benteke blank

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp insists he was happy with Christian Benteke's performance against Exeter despite the striker's failure to score.

The Reds secured safe passage into the fourth round of the FA Cup with a 3-0 win over the League Two minnows on Wednesday night, but Benteke came in for criticism from some quarters after going another game without a goal.

The big-money Belgian has struggled to live up to expectations since arriving from Aston Villa in the summer, and has now failed to score in his last six outings for Klopp's side.

However, Klopp has defended his player, adding that strikers should be judged on far more than just their goal return.

"I saw him after the game and he was in good shape," the former Dortmund boss told BT Sport.

"It's not the most thankful game for a striker, all the defensive players jumped on him.

"The referee didn't help. There were a lot of situations, especially in the beginning of the game, when he said Christian fouled [an Exeter player]. I couldn't see this - they were normal challenges.

"He [Benteke] worked over the 92 minutes, and that was important to me.

"It would have been good for him, and us, if he could have scored tonight. He didn't, but he worked for the space around the box and in the box.

"A striker, if he doesn't score, isn't satisfied. That's normal, but he was okay."

Former Liverpool striker Michael Owen was far less kind to Benteke in his BT Sport post-match analysis, though, saying: "I can't see him getting in the starting line-up any time soon.

"I don't think the team play to his strengths, [but] he should be scoring one or two goals in a game like this.

"He's got a lot of quality, but he's got so many gaps in his game if he wants to be a top player in these parts.”