Daniel’s pain game
WHEN Daniel Sturridge is fit and firing, Sergio Aguero is the only striker who is better than him in the Barclays Premier League. That’s how highly I rate Daniel. He destroyed Aston Villa in September and I hoped then that would be the start of a long run leading Liverpool’s attack but, since that game on September 26, he has only made one appearance. So it was interesting to see Jurgen Klopp say yesterday that Daniel needs to understand what real pain is. The one thing I remember most of all from being his team-mate is that he had to feel 100 per cent right mentally and physically in order to play. The thing is, with professional football, it’s not often any player will take to the field 100 per cent fit. There is always a knock or something niggling and when that is the case, you just grit your teeth and get through it. But Sturridge’s continued unavailability is presenting Liverpool with a problem now. If they put him up for sale, every top club bar Manchester City would take him over their strikers, but how long can Liverpool wait for him to be ready? Do the club start to think they need to move him on, to get a good fee and save on his big wages? Christian Benteke’s arrival was a statement from the owners and Brendan Rodgers that they could no longer rely on Sturridge and it looks as if Harry Kane has overtaken him with England through his consistent availability and his performances. I’m a massive fan of Kane but a fully-fit Sturridge is better. Daniel’s problem now, though, is that he’s being remembered more for injuries than goals. And he is the only man who can change that perception.