Liverpool’s Daniel Sturridge is fit and ready to go (Picture: Getty Images)
Days after Daniel Sturridge made his return to first-team training for Liverpool, reports suggested that the England striker is looking to leave the club, having grown fed up with the way his injury problems have been portrayed.
According to the Telegraph, Sturridge is ‘prepared to quit Liverpool,’ following widespread criticism of his mentality, and question marks over his commitment to the cause.
Speaking to reporters in November, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp addressed Sturridge’s long-term injuries – and his lengthy recovery – saying the 26-year-old must ‘learn what is serious pain and what is only pain.’
Reacting to this, Sturridge’s former team-mate Jamie Carragher revealed that ‘the one thing I remember most of all from being his team-mate is that he had to feel 100 percent right mentally and physically in order to play.’
This gives credence to Wallace’s claims, with Sturridge’s rehabilitation frustrating supporters and leading to widespread criticism on social media.
But to suggest that Sturridge is looking to leave the club as a result, ahead of his hotly anticipated return to action, is bemusing.
Having signed a new long-term contract with the club in 2014, Sturridge is set to remain with the Reds until at least 2018/19, with the terms of his deal making him one of Liverpool’s highest-paid players.
Daniel Sturridge is not looking for a transfer away from Liverpool
Jurgen Klopp has told Daniel Sturridge there are different levels of pain (Picture: Getty Images)
He is one of the only top-level players in Klopp’s squad at this stage, alongside Philippe Coutinho, Mamadou Sakho, Roberto Firmino and Jordan Henderson, and likely one of the first names on the German’s team sheet when fit.
With two goals in Liverpool’s 6-1 win over Southampton in the League Cup quarter-finals in December, Sturridge underlined his value to the club, and grabbed Klopp’s attention.
‘I said to him after the game: “Now I know what everybody is talking about.” I knew about his quality but not live in a stadium,’ Klopp said, and when discussing the former Chelsea striker since that performance, it has always been in glowing terms.
Sturridge could make his return to the first-team lineup in Saturday’s clash with Sunderland in the Premier League, though he is more likely to appear against West Ham United in the FA Cup on Tuesday night.
He is a key player for Klopp, and talk of a possible departure is hugely premature – most importantly, as it is yet to be reported by any local journalist.
Instead provoking of speculation over his future, Sturridge’s return to the Liverpool first team should be seen as a major positive.
Having taken a sensitive, long-term approach to his rehabilitation, Klopp could seen be reaping the benefits – and Sturridge will no doubt be on the same page.