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The transfer window brings with it everyone's favourite football clichés revolving around a player's happiness of being at a new club. With Liverpool in particular, new recruits are always quick to mention the importance of the club's history, the legendary fan base, and how excited they are to play with legends old and new. Not much stock is usually put into said clichés, but on the approximate-ish anniversary of Daniel Sturridge's arrival on Merseyside, he revisited his reasons for signing with the club.
"The biggest reason I came here is because Liverpool are an unbelievable club with great history," Sturridge said in an interview with my favourite airport read, Four Four Two. "When you add to that the incredible fans and world-class players, it was an easy decision.
"It wasn't a case of 'Should I go?', it was more like 'When can I come?'. When they put the bid in for me I was just thinking about getting myself up the motorway as fast as possible!"
It's rare that a player couches his joy at being transferred in such enthusiastic terms, but Sturridge's escape from Stamford Bridge couldn't possibly have come quicker for a player eager to make his mark.
"I was ready to go and wanted to further my career," Sturridge explained of the necessity of leaving Chelsea. "I needed regular football and I wasn't being given that, particularly in what I feel is my best position.
"When Liverpool came knocking there was only one outcome. I think you can see how much I love being here and we're all excited about the direction Brendan is taking us. At Liverpool I feel important to the team."
The need to feel important has been leveled at Sturridge in the past, not necessarily as a criticism but as one part of a psychological profile that could be used to the club's advantage if Brendan Rodgers plays up on it. Sturridge certainly experienced this during Luis Suarez's exile, but the Uruguayan's return hasn't noticeably diminished Sturridge's mental game in any way that suggests he's disappointed with his manager's split attention.
"If I can keep developing my game and get a place at the World Cup, I'll be delighted," the striker continued. "That would be an amazing achievement. When you consider where I've come from since last January, it'd be brilliant to be on that plane to Brazil."
Sturridge's emergence as one half of the league's top striking duo should be enough to earn him a place in England's squad. It's been a joy for fans to watch his progress in the last year, and it sounds as though Sturridge is just as keen on how moving to Liverpool has improved his career significantly.
