'He deserves awards and Dan can improve'
Brendan Rodgers applauded the news that 'remarkable' Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge had picked up a pair of Player of the Month awards for his series of stand-out displays during February.
The 24-year-old was named the star man by the Barclays Premier League on Friday, before today it was confirmed that Reds fans had selected the No.15 as their top performer for the month too.
Amid his consistent creativity and invention in the side's attack, Sturridge weighed in with five goals in four different matches - including a crucial double as Swansea City were eventually downed 4-3.
Rodgers backed the dual honour for the England international - who he has challenged to become world-class at Anfield - but sent a warning to opponents too: the forward can get even better.
"He was remarkable," the Northern Irishman told Liverpoolfc.com. "He is a world-class talent and he'll become a world-class player if he can consistently do it now in the next couple of seasons.
"He has already shown it with his play; he's a wonderful finisher, a really natural finisher. He's got a great advantage of pace and power - he showed up very well in those games in that month.
"He's very deserving and is a young player, at 24, who I feel has still got a lot of improvement in him. Hopefully he can go on and be the player that we think he can."
At face value, it may seem hard to fathom how a man who has found the back of the net 32 times in 40 appearances since becoming a Liverpool player in January 2013 can possibly improve.
In what areas, then, does Rodgers believe the Englishman can develop and how will the manager implement a strategy to ensure that Sturridge continues to blossom for the Reds?
The boss explained: "He'll look at his link-up play and the speed of his link-up play. I know he wants to improve on his heading.
"And then just ensuring that he gets himself out on the training field in order to get into the games. That maturity will help his movement, his touch and that link-up play.
"He's a natural born finisher, so he'll always get goals. There are many aspects of his game that we can brush up on, but thankfully he wants to get better as well - that's half the battle.
"It's something we do with all of the players. Your football career can be very short and we ask them to be the very best that they can be.
"We look to rinse as much out of them as we can, in order for them to maximise how they can play the game.
"Every player, from Steven Gerrard right the way through to our youngest players, we're always looking at ways in which they can improve.
"What's important is that you consolidate their strength and reinforce the strong parts of their game - of which there are many, to be at a club like Liverpool.
"Where there are areas in which they can get better, both on and off the field, we really narrow in on that focus."