Modern day punditry is a permanent paradox. On the one hand, analysts have more access to a greater variety of information than ever before; on the other, the vast majority of post-match discussion falls into a patronisingly superficial hero/villain narrative.
[ffc_insert title=”Why Daniel Sturridge needs to leave for everyone’s sake” name=”Time’s Up” image_ link=”https://www.footballfancast.com/features/all-good-things-come-to-an-end-sturridge-liverpool-must-part” link_text=”Read More” ]
Sure, Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher can fascinate and educate when they’re left unsupervised in front of their interactive white board for an hour or so, but when given the fifteen-to-twenty-minute slot to evaluate a match following the full-time whistle, even they fall victim to simplistically singling out one individual – thrusting upon him either saviour or scoundrel status.
Last night was a classic example. After watching his beloved Liverpool crash out of the EFL Cup at the hands of Southampton, Carragher quickly honed in on Daniel Sturridge’s contributions for the evening; most notably, two fluffed chances from six-yard box range you’d expect a striker of the England international’s proven pedigree to score.
“Sturridge is a completely different player to when he first came. I don’t know if his pace has completely gone, or whether he is that worried with injuries that he’s going to pull something. He’s not the player to run in behind so forget replacing Mane it’s never going to happen – all he does is come to feet now.
“The only reason to have Sturridge in the team now is for his finishing ability. You basically have to put things on plate for him. Now tonight Liverpool did and he didn’t finish.
“More often than not you can’t question his finishing but he doesn’t do anything else in the game now like he did when he first came.
“He’s had a poor night in front of goal and more often than not he does finish those chances, but that’s the case with that type of striker now when they don’t give you that target man or run in behind, everything has to be put on a plate for him.”
Admittedly, it wasn’t a particularly good night for Sturridge, amid what hasn’t been a particularly good season, amid what hasn’t been a particularly enjoyable spell under Jurgen Klopp. Finishing ability remains his fundamental asset but in a high-pressure game that carried a ‘must-win’ feel for the Reds, he failed to take advantage of what few opportunities fell his way.
Likewise, his overall impact on the match wasn’t exactly outstanding; two more attempts at goal, one of which was on target, two successful dribbles, two inaccurate crosses, one created chance and the fewest touches, 45, of any outfield Liverpool player to start.
But it’s the notion of ‘like playing with ten men’ that falls into the modern-day trap of pinpointing a scapegoat whenever a ‘major’ English club fails to provide the kind of performance we’d all expect. It’s certainly true that Sturridge struggled to make an impression on the match, yet so did the majority of his team-mates and the criticism of 27-year-old offering nothing when he doesn’t score quite frankly falls flat when compared to the statistics.
Indeed, when you stack up Sturridge’s averages in the top flight against his most significant contemporaries, namely the Premier League’s four leading goalscorers, based on per ninety minutes rather than per appearance (a much fairer judgement considering he’s made more substitute outings than starts this term) his all-round contributions are pretty much in line with Diego Costa, Harry Kane, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Alexis Sanchez. Yet, to claim any of the four are completely anonymous unless they find the net would raise calls of glaring ignorance. All are vital to how their teams play.
Of course, the difference is that those four have found the net regularly this season, whereas Sturridge has misfired throughout the campaign. But as I’ve already alluded to, there are some caveats to explain his shy tally – and his chokes in front of goal last night. He’s made just nine starts in all competitions this season and put away just six goals, two of which came against a severely weakened Spurs side earlier in the EFL Cup.
So in terms of the two chances that frustratingly passed him by against Southampton, perhaps he can be forgiven through a lack of sharpness, confidence and form – three things all strikers, regardless of talent, need to score consistently. As much as some might blame injuries or attitude, Klopp’s continuous failure to show faith in the Three Lions ace has surely played an equal, if not more significant, part.
Likewise, although the idea of Sturridge losing his pace is certainly up for discussion, as are the reasons why, last night’s game was a particularly poor choice of occasion for Carragher to bring it up. Whilst few would dispute Sturridge is currently lacking some of the dynamism and penetration of his younger years, could he really be expected to get behind Southampton’s defence at Anfield? As Whoscored’s heatmap shows, Claude Puel’s side were camped in their own third for much of the match – what space was there for Sturridge to genuinely tear into?
There can be no doubt that Sturridge isn’t performing to the same levels he was during his first 18 months at Anfield, or for that matter throughout the entirety of Brendan Rodgers’ tenure. But as the old adage goes, ‘form is temporary, class is permanent’ – and to judge a striker on his contributions to a team Klopp has largely excluded him from in the last 18 months amid the driest spell of his career is glaringly short-sighted from one of the biggest names in British punditry.
The timing, meanwhile, tying Sturridge so intrinsically into Liverpool’s elimination from the EFL Cup despite their many other failings amid a frustrating and below-par evening at Anfield, verges upon professional negligence. Making a scapegoat out of a striker who missed two good chances is just too simplistic for this day and age.
