Supporters questioned the Liverpool manager's purchase of a striker with a goal return of just one in his previous 18 games, but as the French youth international registered his sixth of the campaign, it's looking like quite an astute buy from the Spaniard.
While David Ngog appeared to stutter at club level with Paris Saint-Germain, one thing that couldn't be questioned was his international form, having scored at every youth level since his 2004 introduction to the Under-16 side.
With 21 goals in just 39 games, it seems Ngog has a good possibility of starting for the France first team on a regular basis in the future.
As the Liverpool striker reaches the halfway point of his second season, he is starting to show glimpses of why Rafa made the right choice bringing him to Anfield.
Standing at 6'2", Ngog has the height and aeriability you would want from someone who plays as a target man. But he also possesses the technical ability to play on the floor, and a first touch that can leave defenders flat-footed.
The pacey forward operates just as well on either wing, where he attacks the box with more than enough pace to outrun most Premier League defenders. However, his lack of experience can lead to deadend runs and wrong decisions made at crucial times.
But at just 20 years of age, these are issues that should get ironed out with the more game time he gets under his belt. Despite Liverpool losing Fernando Torres to injury for part of this season, the positive is the valuable experience that David Ngog is gaining with each passing game he spends deputising.
The Frenchman has lighting quick reflexes and definitely shows his potential more when playing on instinct, but sometimes when the game slows down and Ngog has time to think on the ball, he hangs on to possession for too long and looks unable to decide the best option to take.
This sort of understanding can easily be improved as he gets more minutes on the pitch.
Having only featured in 30 games in his 18 months with Liverpool, mostly as a substitute, Ngog does miss some of his chances in front of goal. Again, we should see this disappear as he matures with time and experience, with the main positive being he is in the right places when he misses his opportunities.
Whilst David Ngog's sportsmanship was called in to question with his shameful dive against Birmingham this season, he has shown alot more humility off the field, regularly turning down interviews from the French media, telling them to come back when he has done something worth talking about.
There is a hint of the character Benitez searches for when scouting new players, also evident throughout Anfield's current crop of youth and reserve players.
With Liverpool unable to afford another expensive striker to bolster the squad during the summer transfer window, the European away games against pedigree opponents, and tough Premier League fixtures against the likes of Manchester United, means David Ngog is benefiting greatly from his opportunities in the first team.
Something which wouldn't have happened anywhere near as much if there had been a £15million striker ahead of him.
David Ngog is not currently setting the world alight, but he is still proving his potential for the future with a recent goal return very similar to players currently worth ten times his transfer fee.
With a couple more years of experience, a slight increase in upper body strength, and some further tutelage from Fernando Torres; at £1.5million, Rafa Benitez looks to have signed a potential bargain, and a player who could develop in to quiet a bright prospect for Liverpool Football Club.