LIVERPOOL legend Ian Rush believes the strike partnership of Robbie Keane and Fernando Torres has the potential to be as lucrative as his own pairing with Kenny Dalglish.

Rush and Dalglish spread terror throughout defences as one of the most celebrated forward pairings in English football history, helping the Anfield outfit dominate the game both at home and abroad during the 1980s.

Torres and Keane have yet to score in the same game, with the latter having struggled to find his goal-scoring touch since his £20million summer move from Tottenham Hotspur.

But Rush, Liverpool’s all-time leading goalscorer, is confident the Irishman can rediscover his form and develop a fruitful partnership with Torres.

“Given time there’s no doubt that Keane and Torres could be as good as myself and Dalglish,” said Rush.

“When you are at a big club like Liverpool, people are always going to compare you to players from the past, but you can only compare them together when they win the league. And I’d like to see them compared to me and Kenny because for me they are quality players.

“People talk about Keane not playing as well as he was last season but Berbatov isn’t for United either, but he gets away with it because of the amount of games he plays in.

“I’m sure Keane will get his chance but the most important thing for him is to keep his confidence.”

Keane and Torres haven’t played alongside each other since Liverpool’s goalless draw against Fulham at Anfield in November.

However, Rush believes that given time the partnership could be the key to the title ambitions of Rafael Benitez’s men.