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Gonzalo Higuaín is a deadly striker who plays for Napoli. Daniel Sturridge is a striker who plays for Liverpool. Both are deadly strikers, but one is frustratingly injury-prone. Higuaín is having the best league season of his career, scoring 27 league goals in just 29 Serie A matches. His form is so striking that he could leave after three seasons at the club.
Napoli are rumoured to want a striker who has scored 38 goals in 61 league appearances to replace one who has scored 62 in 100 league games. This all makes sense in one way. Need a top striker? Looking for a way to compete at the very top domestically and in European football? Sign a 28-year-old who is at his peak who has proven his credentials in La Liga for Real Madrid and in Serie A for Napoli. This expensive and sensible plan leaves Napoli, however, with a bit of a problem.
Enter Daniel Sturridge. He's fit again and definitely knows how to score goals. He's also technically strong, skilful, and intelligent enough to play beyond the shores of the Premier League. Sell Higuaín. Collect funds. Use collected funds. Set limit to £20 million. Buy Daniel Sturridge. Enjoy two to three seasons of relative injury-free goodness. It would be a smart move -- fitness permitting -- for Napoli, but it's probably not a sensible one for Liverpool. After all, selling your best striker is never too sharp unless his name is Fernando Torres. Sorry Nando! Seriously, we never saw that coming.
The rumours for this one have come from Italy -- Per Sempre Napoli to be exact -- so it must be true. This writer cannot read or write Italian, thereby possessing credibility that's hard to find elsewhere. We should all be thankful for lots of English websites selectively reporting these rumours for everyone to enjoy.
Unless Jürgen Klopp doesn't trust Sturridge or there are shady happenings that nobody is aware of, Sturridge will almost certainly stick around. Liverpool should be getting the best years of a 26-year-old striker player with the experience, excellence, and exuberance needed to thrive.
It's a decent bit of transfer talk to pass the time before Liverpool's biggest match at Old Trafford in the history of 2016, and with the summer transfer window not too far away, perhaps it's best to keep an unfocused eye on this. Before the summer rolls round, Sturridge has seriously grave Premier League and Europa League business to attend to anyway.
Often riddled with physical maladies but essential to a red revival, Sturridge can wait a few years before exploring Naples. Please.