The Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez is impressed with the way the new youth development program has progressed since Kenny Dalglish arrived in a total shake-up of the academy set up.

Dalglish scouted the English wonderkid Dave Moli from Luton and persuaded them to let the promising youngster move to the Liverpool academy, and Benitez praised his contribution along with the whole new youth development team at Kirby.

“It is much better now.” said Benitez, “The players can see the difference and I am sure it will be easier for them to progress.

“It is always important to develop your own players. Local players have passion and desire and I think that is the key if you want to be consistent and stay at the top – you have to produce your own players.

“When you make changes it can take time, but we all have the same plan, everybody is following it and we try to do the same things here at Melwood (the first-team training complex) and at the academy.’

Along with Dalglish, Rodolfo Borrell and Jose Segura have been brought in to supervise the coaching, as Liverpool have vowed to improve the youth training program.

Benitez added: “They are doing well, but we didn’t bring in just these two coaches. We brought in more people and changed staff.

“When you talk with agents, or people who are involved with coaching or watching the academy, everyone says it has changed a lot.”

The Luton Town youth development officer Gregg Broughton admitted that he allowed Moli to join Liverpool as it would be a great place for him to develop his potential.

Although we never like to lose talented footballers from Luton Town, it is also important that if it is right for the football club that we don’t stand in the way of a young player’s development.

“It is not our usual policy to allow any of our young players to leave Kenilworth Road for another club. Nobody wants to see a player with potential such as Dave’s leave, but on this occasion we took into consideration a number of factors.

“The first is the value of the player in the short and long term, while the second takes into account the player’s natural footballing progression and development.

“All of these aspects were taken into consideration and we felt it right to allow Dave and his family to talk to Liverpool.”

Hopefully Moli will be the first of many young Brits to arrive at Kirby, and maybe one day they could produce the same class of players as the Arsenal Academy.