Liverpool midfielder Joe Allen believes that the talent of teammate Raheem Sterling is "frightening" for a 20-year-old.

The English international recorded his 11th goal in all competitions so far this season when he weaved through a number of Newcastle United players and curled a shot past Tim Krul for the first goal in a 2-0 win.

But whilst Sterling has hit the headlines for various incidents recently, including contractual disagreements and the use of the legal high shisha, Allen insists that on the pitch - Sterling continues to rise.

"People forget sometimes that Raheem is only 20 years old," Allen said. "It’s frightening how good he is.

"He always focuses on his football. He’s someone who will continue to get better and better. Performances like that are what he’s all about.

"Goal scoring is something he’s getting better at all the time, credit to him. His rise during my three seasons here has been incredible.

"I remember his first start in the Manchester City game (in 2012) when he was thrown in. It was pretty clear then that he was special and since then he’s gone on to prove that."

The Welshman was quizzed about what advice he could offer to Sterling, who is believed to be holding out for higher wages as he stalls talks with the club over a new deal - to which the 24-year-old replied: "I’m not the man to give him advice.

"It’s something that everyone is hopeful will get resolved and that he can be here at this club for a very long time.

"Sometimes people talk about how there’s no young English talent but that’s a load of rubbish, being honest.

"There aren’t many 20 year olds in world football doing what Raheem is doing. It’s great for England as a nation and more importantly for Liverpool."

Sterling, and Liverpool, will be now focusing on their FA Cup semi-final with Aston Villa at Wembley Stadium this Sunday and Allen has insisted silverware is a tantalising prospect.

"It’s the reason you join a club like this – the dream of competing for the top prizes and potentially getting some silverware," he said.

"There’s a huge incentive for every player here. It’s also the type of game the supporters can’t wait for.

"The season before I joined the club, they won the League Cup. You want to build on that. I think the most important is that there has been progression every season.

"Last season we came so close, we didn’t win the title but it was still a successful season. People have to see it that way, as hard as it was to swallow.

He continued: "It was disappointing how it went in the Champions League this season but playing in that competition was another step forward.

"Everyone is ready to make that leap. We are generally a young squad who are gathering experience and getting better all the time. Hopefully in the next few years we can go that step further and win trophies."

"Villa had a great result on the weekend so they will be raring to go, just like we will. That will make for a great game at a historic venue. Every single player wants to ensure we get ourselves back there for the final."