BR: Sterling can maintain his figures
Raheem Sterling has the mentality and natural potential to regularly provide goals and assists in the double figures throughout his career, Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers believes.
The 20-year-old registered the crucial contribution during a 1-0 Boxing Day victory at Burnley, seizing upon a Philippe Coutinho assist to run behind and find the target at Turf Moor.
His composure was marked. Where at Old Trafford the finishing had not been of sufficient standard to beat David De Gea, this time Sterling simply removed the goalkeeper altogether.
In a swift movement, he carried the ball around the onrushing Tom Heaton and - despite two defenders speeding back to cover - placed a precise effort into the back of the net for three points.
Following quickly on from a pivotal brace at Bournemouth in the Capital One Cup earlier in the month, the strike increased the No.31's tally for 2014-15 to six in all competitions so far.
He is therefore well on the way to surpassing his record of 10 last season, and Rodgers expects such numbers to become standard for the forward during the years to come.
The manager said: "If I look at Raheem, his outcome last year in terms of goals and assists was probably where it's at - in and around 10 to 15 goals, and creating goals. That's a very good return for him.
"He's a natural winger and if he gets those figures on a regular basis - between 10 and 15 goals a season, and assisting goals - then I think that's a very good number for him.
"You have other players that are out-and-out No.9s; he has shown, and his career will show as he matures even more, that he's got that ability.
"It was great composure [against Burnley] to get through on goal like that and beat the goalkeeper. Tom Heaton is a very good goalkeeper, so to get around him and finish like he did was really good composure and calmness from Raheem.
"I genuinely believe that he's got that ability to score. He is very instinctive when he goes through. His touch on the ball can be assured and it's something that he knows is part of his game - to create and score goals. He's doing very well at that.
"It's something that you can develop with confidence over the course of your career. I think you'll see his numbers improve and improve as his career goes on.
"I'm very happy with his performance; he has gone into that role and offered us a real threat. His pace in every game is phenomenal but he's got that bit of composure at the end now. He's going to miss some chances, of course, but you saw that the one opportunity he had, he took."
With Mario Balotelli and Daniel Sturridge forced out through injury recently, Rodgers has fielded Sterling in a central attacking role, thriving on the creative exploits of the likes of Coutinho and Adam Lallana.
His pace and acceleration are obvious dangers to opposition defences, but his upper body strength and work-rate have offered a focal point to play off in the 3-4-3 formation.
The boss has been delighted with the young Englishman's efforts and in particular the way he can block out any external pressures to focus fully on the demands and instructions asked.
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"He deals with it so well. It's hard to hide the talent," Rodgers continued. "If you have the talent, you're going to be under scrutiny; we protect the players as much as we can.
"I've seen him develop into a wonderful young man - he has got great maturity. I think back to the boy of 17 when I arrived here and I see him now and the maturity that he has and how he has taken it all into his stride.
"Of course, he's had difficult moments in there, but he's a real pleasure to work with. It's hard to hide that talent. When you're so good, people want to talk about you.
"The higher you climb the ladder, people want to criticise you more as well. I'm delighted to work with him and hopefully we can work together for a long time.
"He goes into each game to enjoy it and to play. He's still very young, with an enthusiasm and love of football. He's got no fear when he plays.
"He's had some criticism this year, which I find a little bit harsh, maybe that's because he wasn't scoring. But his contribution for us is a real catalyst for the team; his movement, pace and intelligence in how he presses the ball, especially since I moved him into that central role, has made a marked difference to the team."