Can Daniel Sturridge be the main striker for Liverpool next season?

However, the question remains if he can be the primary striker for Liverpool once Suarez leaves. There is a definite doubt about that because of his vulnerability to injury. In his brief Liverpool career, he has already limped off the pitch a couple of times and he is currently undergoing rehabilitation for an ankle injury that might threaten his pre-season. Even though he has a good conversion rate in front of goal, he is not a dead ball specialist like Luis Suarez. Suarez scored a number of free kicks for Liverpool last season and his recent exhibition at the Confederations Cup is yet another illustration of that talent of his.

Fabio Borini has had a faulty start to his Liverpool career but he scored a goal at the fag-end of the season, igniting some hope that he can still make a mark at the club. He scored against the Netherlands U-21 team for Italy in the semi-finals of the U-21 European Championships. He will come back an improved player from there and will only strengthen with pre-season training under Rodgers. He will also benefit from the competition that he will find within the squad.

It remains to be seen how Liverpool cope with the Suarez affair, whether they tighten up and refuse to listen to offers on him or cash in on him when he is anyway unavailable for the first six games for Liverpool. If they do cash in, the Anfield faithful will hope that Liverpool invest in an established striker to replace his goal-scoring ability so that Sturridge can continue to play that role that he played with Suarez. That will be Liverpool’s best chance to reach the Top 4, otherwise a quiet nervousness will definitely surround Anfield.