As an avid reader of some pretty heavyweight fiction, Roy Hodgson knows opening chapters are extremely important. Just like novelists, football managers benefit from good starts and he will consequently be suitably satisfied with tonight's assured competitive beginning to his Liverpool reign.

Two polished finishes from David Ngog – one dinked, one volleyed – on a balmy Balkan evening ensured the first leg of this Europa League third-round qualifier was anything but the ordeal Hodgson had privately feared.

He asked a young, makeshift side to "swim" and, perhaps to his surprise, they generally did – none more strongly than Ngog and David Amoo, an exhilarating winger Liverpool fans are unlikely to have heard the last of.

Granted Rabotnicki were unexpectedly obliging hosts but with his, ableit at times understandably ring rusty, visitors playing with real width and disciplined intelligence – tellingly, no one was booked – the early signs are Hodgson's unfolding Anfield story could be well worth sticking with.

"Front players need goals. Tonight David Ngog got them and that will be a big weight off his mind," Hodgson said. "I'm just delighted so many players who were under pressure coming into the game can go back to Liverpool tomorrow feeling good about themselves. I'm very satisfied as it could have been very difficult for us in front of a big crowd who really supported their team."

On Tuesday locals here marked the anniversary of the devastating earthquake which flattened large areas of Skopje in 1963, killing 1,066 people. Forty seven years on, the clock at the city's former train station still has its hands frozen at 5.17am, the moment the quake struck in one of Europe's seismically most unstable regions.

Last night residents were ready for Rabotnicki to rumble Hodgson's youthful ensemble. The need for post-World Cup holidays dictated Liverpool's new manager was without 10 senior players for his first formal game in charge of the club he took over only a month ago but it soon appeared the Macedonian threat had been greatly exaggerated. Lucas Leiva, Hodgson's captain for the night, is not every Liverpool fan's favourite but the Brazilian was soon cutting an assured figure in the heart of an essentially five-man midfield, winning some key interceptions.

He also took the 17th-minute free-kick which was completely misread by two defenders, thereby permitting the unattended Ngog to lift the ball over the advancing goalkeeper Martin Bogatinov. Goals rarely come softer.

Although Jay Spearing was sometimes too easily dispossessed and novice right-back Martin Kelly found himself turned by Rabotnicki's Brazilian forward Wandeir, the Macedonians largely found Martin Skrtel and Sotirios Kyrgiakos an obdurate defensive barrier.

Much as the 20,000 who had crammed into a half-built stadium for the biggest game in Rabotnicki's history delighted in booing the latter's every touch – Macedonians are not generally over-fond of their Greek neighbours – Diego Cavalieri, Liverpool's goalkeeper, could have been forgiven for dozing off. Toothless throughout, the Macedonians were as weak as the ground's new floodlights, which dimmed alarmingly during the second half.

Not that Bogatinov was exactly overworked. Despite the odd adroit touch from Milan Jovanovic, the Serbia winger newly signed from Standard Liège, and Alberto Aquilani along with Amoo's raw energy down the flanks, it is unlikely Steven Gerrard, Joe Cole and Fernando Torres will be sweating on their places.

Yet if Jovanovic and Aquilani – who began in a withdrawn attacking role floating behind Ngog – were big on economy of effort, Amoo's high-intensity exertions suggested he saw this as an important audition. The former Millwall flyer is all scorching pace and fierce crossing and there could be some exciting cameos to come from him.

Ngog, too, is clearly anxious to please his new manager and the young French striker duly arrived in the right place at the right time to claim his second goal.

Kelly, overlapping down the right, drove in a splendid cross weighted perfectly for Ngog to connect with. All that remained was for the forward to volley it right-footed into the top corner from around six yards.

It was the sort of instinctive, first-time, natural poacher's finish which indicated he may yet confound his many doubters. A new, exciting, chapter might just have begun at Anfield.