The 21-year-old was paired up with Higgy for the last 17minutes of Saturday's 2-1 win at Hearts in which the big Scouser became the first Motherwell striker to reach 20 goals since Willie Pettigrew back in 1975/76.

With Higdon sitting joint-top of the SPL strike charts on 19 goals with Leigh Griffiths, McHugh believes these vital statistics back up his argument that Higgy is the most lethal operator in the top tier.

He said: "When it comes to the quality of Higgy's finishing he is right up there as the best striker in the SPL.

"You look at his goal stats and he is joint top scorer with Griffiths but that does not tell the whole story.

"The thing that always stands out for me is how composed he is when he is in and around the six-yard box.

"He scored a cracking goal against Celtic with a cushioned volley from his instep but then at Hearts he banged in a 20-yarder.

"Earlier in the season he scored a hat-trick against Inverness and I think he took these goals with either foot and his head.

"For me that is the ultimate proof of how good a finisher Higgy is, in that he can score in every manner required of him.

"I train with him every day and he works really hard on all aspects of his finishing technique and I guess as a result he has complete faith in it.

"But when you watch him and he is about to pull the trigger, he always seems to have so much time and that is the hallmark of the best strikers out there.

"I have played alongside a few good strikers at Motherwell and against a few good ones, however Michael is probably the best."