Young Burnley striker praised by loan manager following impressive display against Bradford City

The 19-year-old had a day to remember on Saturday as he bagged a brace and an assist in the 3-0 victory against Bradford City.

It means the academy striker has scored three goals in his first five appearances for the Shrimps, who sit seventh in the League Two table.

Morecambe boss Derek Adams was understandably delighted with the forward’s display at the Mazuma Stadium at the weekend.

“To score three goals at home is always pleasing in front of your home supporters,” he told BBC Radio Lancashire.

“I thought Michael Mellon was magnificent, he could have even got a few others. He probably should have had one of their players sent off as well.

“He’s an out-and-out goalscorer. He’s a striker that plays on the shoulder of defenders, he can take the ball and he’ll run behind. He wants to score and he wants to create chances for others. It was a top performance from him.

“They just couldn’t deal with us. They started with a back three, which we knew they’d do, but at half-time they changed it to a four. But any change or permutation didn’t really cause us any problem because our players were sound out of possession and in possession.

“That’s the beauty of us this season, we’ve got a lot of players that tactically are very good.

“With young players you can give them information and they take it on board. The older you get, sometimes you don’t take it on board or your legs don’t go, whereas the younger players just take it on board.”

Mellon, the son of experienced manager and former Claret Micky, started his career with Manchester United before joining Burnley’s academy at Under-16 level in 2019.

Born in Blackpool, the striker has represented Scotland at youth level, scoring his first goal for the Under-17s against Sweden in February 2020.

Mellon signed a professional contract in 2022 that will keep him at the club until the summer of 2025.

He also spent time on loan with Morecambe during the second half of last season, making eight appearances before suffering a shoulder injury.