Anfield legends stand up for Mellor

Neil Mellor reaches the most important Christmas of his blossoming professional career with glowing endorsements from two of Liverpool’s legends.

The 22-year-old knows that Anfield boss Rafael Benitez will pull out all the stops to bring in a new striker during the January transfer window, a move which could see Mellor being replaced in the Liverpool first team.

Being threatened with losing his first-team place is giving Mellor a new incentive to perform, and he will look to prove his value to Liverpool during the holiday programme.

The first challenge arrives on Boxing Day at West Brom where Mellor will look to strength his position as a genuine first-team player.

Mellor has made a pretty impressive start to senior team life in Liverpool’s injury crisis and has hit five goals in 11 games.

There have been many critics who have doubted his top-level quality, but Liverpool’s best ever goalscorer Ian Rush, and Steve Heighway – a hero from the Bill Shankly era – have no doubts that Mellor can make the grade and give Benitez a genuine alternative in attack.

Heighway, Liverpool’s academy director, has been instrumental in the Sheffield-born striker’s progress through the youth ranks, and says: “Neil is not doing anything differently now than he did when he we first saw him playing at youth level. He always scored goals.

“People talk about where he needs to improve, and I am sure he will, but it is a similar situation with Neil as it was with Robbie Fowler when he came into the senior side.

“Everyone knows what a tremendous goalscorer Robbie became, but there were other areas of his game which needed work.”

Rush is also a big Mellor fan and remarked: “You could see on Sunday against Newcastle what a difference it made for Milan Baros to have Neil alongside him.

“When a new striker arrives, even if it is someone of Fernando Morientes’ stature, I am certain Mellor will still have a future at Anfield.

“He has been terrific since getting his chance and I am delighted he has proved right those of us who knew he was a top finisher.

“Since Thierry Henry burst onto the scene, it frustrates me a bit that every striker is judged on being the complete player in the same way he is.

“People seem to forget Henry is a one-off and in this game, different strikers have different qualities and we should be praising someone like Mellor for what he can do, not emphasising any limitations.

“Ten years ago, I think people would be raving about Mellor for the impact he has had with so little top-flight experience.

“When I broke into the Liverpool team, Kenny Dalglish’s instruction to me was simple: ‘Just you worry about scoring goals, nothing else.’

“I know the game has changed a lot, but the basic principle is the same. Players who score regularly are worth their weight in gold.

“If you do nothing for 89 minutes, but score the winner in the 90th, you have done your job.”

Now in charge of Chester, Rush is fully appreciative of Mellor’s tenacity and scoring instincts.

“As a manager, it is this kind of player you want more than any, because there aren’t many around,” Rush added. “There is no doubt Mellor still has a lot to learn, but there is not much improvement needed when it comes to his finishing.

“As far as I am concerned, scoring goals is the hardest thing in football. It’s a dying art, but Mellor has definitely got it. There are other parts of his game which will come with experience.”