'I admit it, Luis has amazed me'
Ian Rush has been pleasantly surprised by the ruthless streak Luis Suarez has demonstrated in front of goal this season.
With eight games still to play, the Uruguayan has netted 29 times in all competitions - already a vast improvement on his tally of 17 from the last campaign.
And Rush admitted that prior to this season's showing, he saw Suarez as more of a creative force than a prolific marksman.
"At the beginning of the season, I would not have said Suarez was an out-and-out scorer," he told the Liverpool Echo.
"Not in the same way say Robin van Persie is or Michael Owen was when he was at Liverpool.
"I would have considered him as much a maker of goals as a goalscorer. But the number of goals he has scored this season has amazed me."
Suarez currently leads the race for the Barclays Premier League Golden Boot; however, the 26-year-old lies fourth in the European rankings.
He will struggle to edge Lionel Messi, whose tally of 42 puts him square in the frame to collect his third European Golden Shoe trophy.
Rush became the first British player to scoop the prize when he netted 32 times in 1983-84.
And while the Welshman knows Suarez will require a stroke of luck to compete for the accolade this time around, he is confident the forward can emulate the likes of Messi and co in the future.
"To win the European Golden Boot, you have to get that bit of luck," he said. "When I won it, Marco van Basten was injured for about half a season in Holland.
"Obviously Lionel Messi and Ronaldo are on a different planet when it comes to the number of goals they score each season but it would be unlikely they'd be scoring as many in the Premier League."
Rush believes there is still plenty to play for this season.
[OTPA_WIDGET_CONTENT]
With games against Everton and Chelsea at Anfield in the coming months, he expects a repeat of the performance which saw Brendan Rodgers' men overcome Tottenham to clinch a 3-2 victory earlier this month.
"I still feel there is a lot to play for this season because Liverpool need to try and finish in the top six," said Rush.
"It has been a real transitional period this season where the side start to look like they are in control but then fall over themselves.
"When Liverpool have played the top teams they have played well and the result that really impressed me was the win over Spurs.
"Liverpool did not play as well as they can in that game but still won. That was a good sign because they had played well against Manchester City and Arsenal but only took two points from six.
"So it is against the other sides in the Premier League that Liverpool need to show improvements.
"Hopefully a couple of new players in the summer will help and these young lads who have played this season will be a year older and will have more experience."