Rumour Mongering: Arsenal £30M Bid For Sturridge

According to a report from The Mirror this morning, Arsenal are preparing to test Liverpool's resolve to keep Daniel Sturridge with a laughably low bid of £30 million. The report was unclear whether this was a round £30 million, or if an extra quid had been tacked onto the end.

Had Arsenal prepared this bid in the middle of the striker's 18-month injury crisis, it would have been a question worth considering. However, Sturridge is not currently injured, and he's back to banging in goals on a pretty regular basis, to the tune of 12 goals in 23 appearances this season. That rate of return should fetch a great deal more money, particularly in England, to a potential rival, for English talent, and when accounting for the new TV deal.

Obviously any potential buyer of Sturridge would hope for a "glass man" discount. And if a sizable offer came in, Liverpool would be forced to consider benefits of having the money in hand against the potential of having Sturridge out for another lengthy injury spell. Still, the last thing Liverpool would want to do is to sell arguably their best player to a Top 4 rival.

So, fun rumor mongering and all, but I'd be shocked if this came to fruition, particularly at the indicated price.