Liverpool

Daniel Sturridge: 'I'm still Liverpool's best striker'

By Daniel Lewis, Senior Reporter | 14 January 2017

Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge remains confident in his own ability, claiming that he is still the best option available to manager Jurgen Klopp up front.

Daniel Sturridge has claimed that he is "the best striker Liverpool has" despite his restricted playing time in the Premier League so far this season.

The England international has started just five games in the top flight under Jurgen Klopp this term due to a mixture of injury issues and a loss of form.

Sturridge also failed to impress in the midweek EFL Cup defeat to Southampton and could now start Sunday's trip to Manchester United on the bench, but the 27-year-old - who has scored 59 goals in 108 games for the club - remains confident in his own ability.

"I believe I'm the best striker Liverpool has," he told Sky Sports News. "That's my opinion. But the manager and everything else is entitled to their opinion as well. It's the manager who picks the team so if in that specific game, he doesn't feel I'm the best striker for the job, that's his decision. You have to take it on the chin, I can't be upset about it.

"You have to take the rough with the smooth in football, you can't take things personally. I've played many games for Liverpool Football Club. I feel like last season I played a lot of games for the club, I finished top scorer in all competitions. It's not about whether you're injured or not, it's about when you're on the pitch what you do. You want to be available for every single game. Every player wants to play, every player wants to be successful.

"But there's times when you're not fit, and it's how you bounce back from that, how you come out of that, it's how you rebound and put yourself out there on the football pitch. Every player wears their heart on their sleeve in terms of they'll battle through injuries. I've played with injuries before – knocks, tears, everything. It's about pushing yourself to your limits for the club and I feel I've done that."

Sturridge, who has two goals and one assist in the league so far this campaign, started 12 games for Liverpool in 2014-15 and 19 the following year.