YOUNG Burnley striker Jay Rodriguez has been tipped to be the club’s biggest homegrown asset by one of his most experienced team-mates.

Defender Clarke Carlisle has labelled the 21-year-old as “one of the most exciting forwards” he has seen come through the youth system at any of his five full-time teams.

It’s a breathtaking statement considering the soon-to-be 31-year-old worked with attacking midfielders Aaron Lennon at Leeds and Ashley Young at Watford, where both had progressed through their respective clubs trainee schemes, while Peter Crouch was a young striker making his way in the game, after starting out at Spurs, when the two were team-mates at QPR.

“Jay, as a young player, has absolutely everything,” Carlisle enthused.

“He is one of the most exciting forwards I have ever seen come through a football club.

“Now he just needs to learn to play ‘real’ football.

“He will go out there and produce the strikes and he has got the skill to beat people, but also there’s the other side of the game – the defensive tracking and positional sense that will only come with playing matches.

"And I pray that he gets them this season because he is going to come on in leaps and bounds and become one of the biggest assets that Burnley’s ever produced.”

Rodriguez has been forced to play a patient waiting game since the Clarets won promotion to the Premier League in 2009.

After making his debut from the bench in a 1-0 home defeat to Bristol City in December 2007 the Burnley-born starlet was loaned out then Scottish First Division side Stirling Albion, where he made his debut at Parkhead in the Scottish FA Cup fourth round, again as a second-half substitute.

After hitting three goals in 12 games, Rodriguez scored a late winner against Fulham in the Carling Cup third round the following season, setting the Clarets on the road to the semi-finals, where he scored in the second leg against Spurs.

After the Fulham scalp, Rodriguez went on to keep his place in the squad and made a total of 34 further appearances, including the play-off final at Wembley.

But promotion to the Premier League ultimately stalled his progress as former boss Owen Coyle made Scottish striker Steven Fletcher a £3million record signing, pushing the youngster further down the pecking order.

However, Rodriguez is making his mark again under current boss Brian Laws, and after scoring his first goal away from Turf Moor in Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Millwall - his previous six Clarets goals have all been scored in front of the Jimmy McIlroy Stand - Carlisle has tipped him for bigger and better things.

“All he has needed is football,” said the centre half, who this week lost an appeal to have the red card he received at The Den rescinded.

“We’ve been saying for the past two seasons he needs to go out on loan and play consequential football, but now he is getting it in the first team, and doesn’t he look a man? Doesn’t he look every bit the part?

“His learning curve is steep, but he has energy in abundance, he has quality and he also has that humility and that willingness to listen and to learn.

“I’ve got nothing but high hopes for Jay Rodriguez.”