Liverpool 'home at last' but Rodgers admits side 'still adapting'

Mario Balotelli's first goal for the club eight minutes from time looked to have won the game only for Ludogorets substitute Dani Abalo to roll in a 90th-minute equaliser for the Bulgarians.

However, captain Steven Gerrard scored an even later penalty after Javier Manquillo was brought down by goalkeeper Milan Borjan to ensure Liverpool's return to Europe's elite club competition after a five-year absence did not fall flat.

"It was very important to get back in the competition but it was always going to be a tricky tie for us because they are the champions of their country and there are not too many bad teams in the competition," Rodgers said.

"Maybe in the first six months we would have drawn and maybe even lost it but we showed the resilience and character in the group and, roared on by the supporters, it was great for us.

"We could do no more than win tonight. We are not at the standard we were last season, that is for sure.

"There is a lot of adaptation going on as we have a lot of players who have come in and are still adapting.

"We are a work in progress. While we do that it is important we win games.

A win is a win and Liverpool should be okay in such a relatively weak group, but some of their early season performances are naturally going to worry Liverpool fans. The squad has increased in size but they do still seem to be overly reliant on one or two players and just how much they are missing the injured Daniel Sturridge, and of course Luis Suarez, is cause for concern. Rodgers is right that the new players will need time to settle in but with Manchester United improving and the likes of Tottenham and Everton showing signs of friskiness too, one of last season's top four sides could miss out this time. Liverpool need to click into gear soon or their Champions League return might only last one season.

Tony Barrett (The Times): Liverpool may have been absent from the Champions League for five years but they marked their return in the most fitting style imaginable as Steven Gerrard — why always him? — held his nerve to score a penalty deep into stoppage time that gave the five-times European Cup winners a victory every bit as dramatic, if not as stylish, as any that have gone before. This will not go down as one of Anfield’s most famous European nights, it was only a group game against Champions League newcomers after all, but it provided the kind of sporting theatre for which the stadium has become renowned. 

Jonathan Liew (The Daily Telegraph): They may not have been back with a bang, but at least they were back. Perhaps absence really does make the heart grow fonder. Full-time. The old songs rang out around this old ground. It felt not different, not better, not strange, but just as good as before. Liverpool were home at last.

Andy Hunter (The Guardian): Industry was required on a night when invention was sorely lacking from the Liverpool performance and, contrary to preconceptions, their recent £16m signing from Milan shared the workload. Balotelli’s exquisite first goal for Liverpool rewarded an encouraging display from the striker, albeit one that highlighted the need for the Italy international to fine-tune his understanding with those around him and vice-versa.