Daniel Sturridge scored for Liverpool against West Ham, but Jamie Redknapp believes the England striker is a dilemma for Jurgen Klopp.
Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp
Sky Sports pundit, Jamie Redknapp, says Jurgen Klopp has a big decision to make regarding Daniel Sturridge’s future at Anfield.
The 27-year-old Liverpool striker started against West Ham United and scored the opening goal for the Reds. He has made only six Premier League starts this season, scoring three goals.
Redknapp says that Sturridge represents a dilemma for his manager. While he has the ability to produce moments of brilliance, his injury record is his undoing.
“It’s a dilemma for the manager because you can’t get enough game time out of him. He does magic things with a football when he plays, and you can see there at the end Klopp tells him: ‘You’re my man’, but the problem is he hasn’t been all season!,” said Redknapp, as quoted by Sky Sports.
“You need him to play 40 games a season, but it just doesn’t seem to be in his make-up.”
Liverpool’s Daniel Sturridge
Sturridge joined Liverpool in the January transfer window of 2013, and has scored 45 goals in 84 Premier League games for the Merseyside club.
That he is a class striker, and a great finisher, is known to all. However, his fitness has always been a big issue for Liverpool. He tends to pick up injuries every now and then which makes it almost impossible for the manager to include him in their plans.
He earns around £120k-per-week wages (Daily Star) and is one of the club’s top earners. And yet, the club is failing to get the maximum out of him.
“Each player in the world, even great players like Daniel, needs training. It was nice we could build over the last few weeks and then bring him in. You see him around the box with his smartness, he was fantastic,” said Klopp on Sturridge to BBC Sport after the match.
It is clear that Klopp rates him very high. But then again, he is equally frustrated with his prolonged absence through injuries.
Liverpool may look to cash in on the former Chelsea striker. According to reports from The Telegraph, West Ham United are interested in signing him, as Slaven Bilic is desperate to add quality striker to his ranks.
Signing Sturridge will be a gamble for West Ham, but on the flip side, he can be a great asset for a side if (and a big if) he remains fit for majority of the season.
Should West Ham make a move for Sturridge in the summer?
Liverpool’s Daniel Sturridge comes on as manager Juergen Klopp looks on
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