Ian Rush, the former Liverpool and Wales striker, is recovering in hospital after being admitted to intensive care with flu. The 64-year-old was taken to the Countess of Chester Hospital last week after experiencing breathing difficulties, spending two days in intensive care. He has responded to treatment but remains in hospital.
Rush, who is an ambassador for Liverpool Football Club, holds the record as the club's all-time leading men's goalscorer with 346 goals in 660 appearances across two spells. He won five First Division titles and two European Cups, among other honours, after signing from Chester in 1980 for a fee of £300,000. He also scored in three FA Cup final victories for the Reds.
During his 15-season career at Liverpool, broken by a single campaign at Juventus, Rush also played for Leeds, Newcastle, Sheffield United, Wrexham and Sydney Olympic. He earned 73 caps for Wales and was their leading men's goalscorer with 28 goals until Gareth Bale surpassed that record in 2018.
A spokesperson for Liverpool FC said: 'Everyone at Liverpool wishes him a speedy recovery,' and thanked the hospital for 'providing the best care possible for our legend and ambassador of the club'. Rush was made an MBE in 1996 and regularly attends matches at Anfield in his role as a club ambassador.
Meanwhile, NHS figures published on Thursday showed flu cases in England at a record level for the time of year, after a 55% rise in a week to an average of 2,660 patients in hospital each day last week.
