Brendan Rodgers admitted Liverpool are failing to meet the standards they set last season but praised Mario Balotelli after he opened his Reds account.
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The Italian striker, who was a 16 million-pound signing from AC Milan, scored the first goal in a 2-1 Champions League win over Ludogorets, which was sealed by captain Steven Gerrard's injury-time penalty.
Liverpool, who scored 101 goals as they finished runners-up in the Premier League last season, laboured for long periods as they struggled for a second successive home game, following Saturday's defeat to Aston Villa.
And Rodgers believes it will take time for his new-look side to gel after they lost top scorer Luis Suarez and spent 117 million pounds on nine signings.
He said in a news conference: "We are not at the standard we were last season. We have a lot of players who have come in and are still adapting. We are a work in progress."
Balotelli's first strike for Liverpool came in his third game for the club and Rodgers revealed he had urged the former Manchester City player to become more of a penalty-box poacher and use his talent closer to goal.
He added: "I said to Mario Balotelli at halftime that he needs to get in the box more. I said to him: 'Make sure you're penalty spot in, rather than penalty box out' because he tends to hang back for the cut-back.
"He is a 6-foot, 3-inch striker, he is great in the air and has great physical strength. His goal showed great touch and a brilliant finish. That will give him a whole load of confidence. He is still adapting, trying to get fit, but he showed his quality tonight. He is used to scoring. He [only] had two games without scoring [for Liverpool]."
Rodgers also praised substitute Fabio Borini, who won the late penalty, and said Bulgarian champions Ludogorets' fine display forced him to alter his tactics.
He said: "It was always going to be a tricky tie. Technically they were very good. We had to show patience and change the shape from 4-3-3 to a [midfield] diamond.
"I am disappointed with the equaliser, as the team were, but we showed the character in the group. The young kid in the box pushes hard to get something and he gets his reward in the penalty.
"I thought we showed great determination. At times we had quality and then in the final third we couldn't make that final pass. Tonight was about perseverance, an attribute you need to have. We kept going."