Sturridge has forced his way firmly into Klopp’s plans with an incredible record this season for Liverpool.
Jurgen Klopp could not have imagined six months ago that Daniel Sturridge would be such a vital part of his Liverpool squad this season.
The 29-year-old has had a torrid time with injuries, but his form to start the season has been incredible, averaging a goal every 47 minutes and scoring on both starts he has had.
How he fits into the Reds’ team, however, has always been debated. Can he offer the high-intensity game over 90 minutes that Klopp demands of his players?
According to the Liverpool boss himself, he believes Sturridge can.
“That’s the target [to play entire games],” he said, according to the Mirror. “Daniel played fantastically against PSG. That role, exactly that. High intensity for 60 or 70 minutes and probably could have played longer, but we had Bobby [Firmino on the bench] then.
“It must always be the target of a player to play with the highest intensity over 95 minutes. I don’t know [if he can do it] because we haven’t tried it yet. He 100% understands the need to do that.
“He doesn’t want us to change our style for him. He plays exactly how we want him. He loves the position. He is that kind of nine-and-a-half, coming back into position, he can be a 10 and play between the lines and play the pass, like he was when he scored the goal [against Chelsea].”
If he is on form and firing, Sturridge is as good as they come in the Premier League, but the doubts over his role have remained for years now.
Still, he showed exactly how important he can be in recent games – both from the start and off the bench – and if he keeps up this form, he will be an incredible asset to Liverpool.
There is still a long way to go, but things are finally looking very positive for Sturridge at Liverpool once again.
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