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LONDON. — Brendan Rodgers says Liverpool have swooped to sign Christian Benteke because the Reds desperately need to improve their firepower. The Belgium striker will be heading to Anfield in a £32,5m deal with Aston Villa, once he successfully passes his medical in London this week.

Liverpool netted only 52 Premier League goals last season, a huge disappointment following the 101 they scored the previous campaign thanks largely to the dual striking combination of Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge.

Suarez departed Merseyside for Barcelona before the start of 2014-15, while Sturridge spent most of last season on the treatment table.

On Sunday, Liverpool concluded negotiations on a payment structure which will see them pay £16m up front, with the remainder of Benteke’s release clause to be paid out over the length of his contract.

And Rodgers told the Liverpool Echo: “It was just clear we needed to score more goals.

“A few years ago we needed to improve our goal tally and we did that and it gave the team a little bit of profit. I feel it was the same this summer.

“We were down on our goals. Overall, it is the balance we need to improve offensively and defensively and the players that will contribute to both.”

Benteke will officially report to Melwood tomorrow when £29 million new signing Roberto Firmino is also due at Liverpool for the first time following his Copa America exertions with Brazil.

Mario Balotelli and Fabio Borini will already be there, forming a not-so-welcoming party after being excluded from the club’s tour to the Far East and Australia.

Next week, Benteke, who is set to have a medical in London today to seal his £32.5m move from Aston Villa, will be joined by Rickie Lambert, Divock Origi and Danny Ings. At some point, Daniel Sturridge will also return from America and work on his fitness in more familiar, if mundane, surroundings.

Consider, too, Philippe Coutinho, Jordon Ibe, Adam Lallana and Lazar Markovic and Brendan Rodgers is clearly hoping competition among £170m worth of attacking talent proves healthy rather than prompting pounding headaches. “The idea is to get the squad fighting,” said the Liverpool manager ahead of yesterday’s latest work-out against Adelaide United.

“We have to improve this year and if you are playing well and working well, you play games. It is as simple as that. The management of it is something that’s obviously very straightforward.”

That is easy for Rodgers to say. Yet, given the scrutiny Rodgers himself is under, this is not the season when he can worry about trampling on egos and the challenge he laid down yesterday reflects a determination that the forthcoming campaign will be about living and breathing Liverpool 24-7.

He will hope a pecking order emerges in terms of the forwards, at least, by the time the transfer window closes on September 1, with Balotelli, Borini and Lambert all surplus to requirements.

Securing interest in Balotelli, even on loan, will not be easy and his agent, Mino Raiola, has already informed Liverpool the Italian will not be moving on, while Borini’s wage demands have previously scuppered his exit.

If they stay, their omission from the tour says they will not play unless their team-mates are struck down en masse. West Brom are keen on Lambert.

Liverpool’s lack of goals last season means the past accomplishments of Benteke and Sturridge would, on paper, create a natural order, with Rodgers showing in the opening friendly win in Thailand last week he is prepared to play different formations.

He started with a 4-4-2 diamond, which could accommodate both, then switched at half-time to 4-3-3, which would see only one play.

The headline figures for Benteke and Sturridge focus on the 49 and 42 goals they have scored respectively in England in the last three years.

Further number crunching reveals the club appearances they have made in each of the last three seasons: Benteke 45 (12-13), 29 (13-14) and 35 (14-15). Sturridge has played 29 games, 31 and 18. Liverpool will play 46 games even if they fall at the first hurdle in all three cup competitions in which they are involved and Sturridge will already miss the start of the season as he recovers from hip surgery.

Firmino is likely to need time to settle in English football following his move from Hoffenheim but his flexibility in a number of roles suggests he will be competing with the likes of Lallana and Ibe as much as Benteke.

It is the reason why Ings (22) and Origi (20) will prove valuable, not least in the Europa League, with Rodgers indicating he could field a totally different team so as not to impact on their ambitions of securing a top-four finish in the Premier League.

Whether it is an embarrassment of riches remains to be seen but, overall, Liverpools squad looks lop-sided with not enough depth in defence or in defensive midfield positions.

Trying to out-score opponents is realistic. “I believe that our defensive organisation is critical to allow our talents to flourish. It always has,” said Rodgers. “You’ve seen on this tour already the idea of our pressing game. Overall it is the balance we need to improve offensively and defensively and the players that will contribute to both.”

At Stoke on the opening day of the season, when Liverpool will be seeking to avenge their 6-1 humiliation, Benteke is likely to be the focal point and the man in possession of the shirt.

With so many rivals snapping at his heels, it is up to the Belgium forward to prove he has the ability and appetite to keep it. — The Daily Express.