A standout performance in Sunday afternoon’s 4-0 win over West Ham has seen Daniel Sturridge emerge as a main topic of Liverpool-related conversation.
Sturridge didn’t take too long to repay his manager’s faith in him as he broke the deadlock to put Liverpool ahead 10 minutes before half-time, expertly rounding goalkeeper Adrián before finding the back of an empty net.
He seemed to thrive thanks to the freedom that the presence of a strike partner was granted him to run in behind, work the channels and drop deep at times.
Former Liverpool boss Graeme Souness was quick to praise Sturridge, with his dominant display once again triggering frustration over his injury problems.
“A fit Sturridge is arguably the first name on the teamsheet. He’s a goalscorer, a door-opener. Once you get the ball into the last third there aren’t many players that possess that kind of ability,” he told Sky Sports.
“But you just can’t rely on him; that’s the problem Man City had, Chelsea had, and at 27 years old, he’s just about to come into his best years as a striker, but you can’t rely on him.”
“People tear a hair out with him, as a manager, the medical side of the club, how do you keep him fit?”
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The level of praise Sturridge has been subject to shouldn’t be a rarity but instead a weekly occurrence. He has the talent to be the prolific forward that fans crave yet his body just continues to let him down.
It will be interesting to see what the future holds for him with his performance against Slaven Bilic’s side triggering supporters to once again wonder whether letting him go would be a mistake.