Home   >   Features   >   LFC Scout Report: Daniel Sturridge

LFC Scout Report: Daniel Sturridge

By on December 18, 2012

It’s less than two weeks until the January transfer window and as Liverpool seek to improve their attacking options as soon as possible, one name continually linked with a move to Anfield is Chelsea forward Daniel Sturridge. We take a look at the former Man City academy player and see how he could fit in at Liverpool.

Full name: Daniel Andre Sturridge
Date of birth: 1 September 1989 (age 23)
Place of birth: Birmingham, England
Playing position: Striker / Winger

After failing to acquire Daniel Sturridge’s services on loan from Chelsea in the summer, Brendan Rodgers is reportedly looking to land him on a permanent deal in January.

Sturridge is a talented left-footed attacker who is able to operate in all three forward positions in 4-3-3 formation but, according to player himself, his preference is to play as central forward.

His physical attributes – strength, balance and very good pace – coupled with excellent technique and natural flair made him stand out in Manchester City’s youth ranks and earned him playing time with the first team in his teens but he moved to Chelsea after his contract expired.

However, after impressing on loan at Bolton under the guidance of Owen Coyle and later back at Chelsea under the guidance of Andre Villas-Boas, alternating between right wide and centre forward roles (though spending arguably more time in the former), Sturridge has fallen out of favour with now former Chelsea manager Roberto Di Matteo and refused to sign a new contract at Chelsea, rendering himself available for transfer as early as January.

Strengths

His physical and technical qualities would undoubtedly suit and improve this Liverpool side. He can dribble past players, he can use his body well to fend off challenges or to skip past opponents, his movement in the final third is very good, with his pace enabling him to burst in behind defenders, and he is able score all kinds of goals, ranging from tap-ins via wonderful curlers to long-range screamers. His record at Chelsea, including the loan at Bolton, stands at 32 goals in 105 appearances, which isn’t bad for a player who is predominantly a wide forward, and a young one at that.

Weaknesses

There is plenty of room for improvement in Sturridge’s game, however. First areas he needs to improve on are the way he works with his teammates and his decision-making in the final third. After watching him for a prolongued period, it’s easy to notice that he’s a fairly egoistic and selfish player and that he forces himself sometimes a bit too much into doing the impossible with the ball even when there is a better option available. He isn’t tactically developed and isn’t very prone to taking his part in tracking back and defending his goal, which surely won’t sit well with a manager like Brendan Rodgers who, while being a proponent of attacking football that is pleasing on the eye, values hard work in training and on the pitch more than anything else. Perhaps this was the actual reason why Di Matteo didn’t opt to use him more often in his time at Chelsea.

Previous Scout Reports:
Christian Eriksen
Wilfried Bony

At £12m, which is the rumoured price Chelsea are asking for Sturridge, he provides something of a gamble as he will be expected to take a major part in sorting out Liverpool’s troubles in front of goal, not to mention the fact that English young talents are usually more expensive than their foreign counterparts and Liverpool are working on a limited budget.

Liverpool’s current squad seems geared towards having an interchangable trio of attackers who all provide genuine scoring threat – the only detail that is lacking are two more forwards who would work well with the likes of Suarez and Gerrard and share the burden of scoring goals. However, compared to transfer fees Liverpool have previously paid for some of domestic talents, Sturridge could indeed prove to be value for money signing if he is given a fair chance and responds well to his new manager’s methods.

While few doubt his talent, his attitude can be off-putting and it will take a good coach and an even better motivator to coax the best out of him and guide him down the path that his favourite player, a certain Thierry Henry, trod long ago – from being a decent winger to becoming a world class striker, should his new manager decide to use him centrally more often than his former employers did.

Obligatory YouTube Video:

We’ll have more scout reports over the next few weeks as the January window nears.



About Nikola Mitrovic

A telecommunications engineer and a boyhood Liverpool and heavy metal fan from proud Montenegrin North. I have been a member of This Is Anfield forums since 2007, recently becoming a moderator and occasionally writing features for This Is Anfield site.

  • anteater71

    We should sign him on loan with a clause for buying him inserted into the deal.

    • Viewpoint_X

      He already said he only wants a permanent deal. That’s the reality the club has to deal with, not any other fantasies.

      • anteater71

        Well then, no deal if I had anything to say. Unfortunately no-one at the club would listen to me.

  • fahrenheit

    No matter who he brings in after Christmas BR will still play with 3 forwards. Our main problem is lack of goals from our wide forwards. You can forget about another centeral forward, no one will force LS out wide. Everyones talking about how good Stirling has been but for me he is one of the main reasons we arnt putting teams to bed, due to his lack of goals. On the other flank we have no one good enough. Stirling will come good in the end but at the young age of 18 he lacks the mentailty to play a final ball or to score goals often. Sturridge will need moulding but he is a goal scorer and thats what LFC need more than anything else.

  • junior galtieri

    ‘Sturridge will need moulding but he is a goal scorer and thats what LFC need more than anything else.’

    I agree – a front line of Sturridge, Sterling and Suarez – should cause defenses plenty of problems – and it’s certainly better than any of the line ups we can put out at the moment

    I also think it’s time to cut our losses over Downing. Without a single league goal or assist to his name, it would be fair to say he hasn’t justified a price tag of £2m – let alone £20m – and playing him at left back is a managerial decision that ranks alongside the idea of replacing the excellent Xabi Alonso with the overrated Gareth Barry

  • naylor

    good player..instinctive goalscorer but should be brought on loan for a year with a view to buy. Should look at the moment to an older more experienced tried and tested goalscorer in someone like (if hes available) David Villa, worth every penny of the £M15 you’d pay for him

  • luarbiasa

    12 million is too much. get him for loan is a better way. look where Sahin is now.

    • davinmccarthy

      dont think you can use sahin as an example. He’s playing in the premier league for the first time. Sturridge has played in the league for a couple of years.

  • Viewpoint_X

    It’s really amusing all the fools suggesting a ‘loan’ deal only. They can’t seem to understand reality…….he already said he’s only going to move if there is a permanent deal offered.

    • anteater71

      Uhm, yeah, we are all fools, right. Guess we all know reality. We still may have an opinion which is that we are so unsure about the lads attitude that we would want our club to sign him only on loan or not at all if that isn’t a viable option.

      • Viewpoint_X

        Yes, well done. I see one of you lot finally got it correct. The loan deal is not an option. Oh and I never mentioned anything about people questioning his attitude.

        • Viewpoint_X

          Also, It’s funny how perception works. I never got this whole attitude thing with Sturridge anyway. He never asked for a transfer even after being benched for so long, never said anything negative about the coaches or anything I remember. He always said when asked that he would like to play his natural position as a CF. Pool fans need to be realistic, it’s a good buy. He’s young and can play at least 4 positions, has an eye for goal, but since his name doesn’t sound Latin he cant be good.

  • http://www.facebook.com/samhud89 Sam Swayzee Hirst

    ASSAIDI