Sturridge, Daniel

[loz]

Daniel Sturridge

Written by Plokoon13 and last updated September 2009

When naming great footballing families, the Sturridges aren’t necessarily the first to spring to mind, but following in the footsteps of his uncle, ex-Derby County and England Under-21 striker Dean as well as his uncle Simon, and his father Michael comes fresh talent in the name of Daniel Sturridge.

[[fimg]=left]http://i290.photobucket.com/albums/ll244/loz1905/SturridgeCity.gif[/[fimg]] Born in Birmingham in 1989, he first began to play for his local club Aston Villa, before moving to Coventry City and then being signed up for Manchester City’s academy at age 13 in 2002.

He was offered a professional contract after shining in City’s youth system, including receiving the prestigious award of the Most Valuable Player at the Nike Cup (the world’s largest under-15 football tournament), only the second person to earn the award (the other being current Manchester City forward Carlos Tevez), and also shining in City’s run in the 2006 FA Youth Cup. From the beginning of the following season, he began to train with Manchester City’s first team, and became a regular and consistent performer for the reserves. Following a hat trick in a reserve match, he was rewarded with sporadic appearances on the substitute’s bench, making his debut against Reading in February 2007.

His first goal for the City first team came in an FA Cup match against Sheffield United, which was rewarded by his full debut in the League against Derby County, in which he scored. He became well known to the Chelsea faithful following a spectacular run of form in the 2008 FA Youth Cup, culminating in our defeat to them in the final of that competition, with Sturridge the leading scorer.

The following season he became more of a regular fixture in Mark Hughes’ squad, scoring four times in 26 appearances, ten of which were starts, earning him the fans’ vote as he won the Manchester City Young Player of the Season.

[[fimg]=right]http://i290.photobucket.com/albums/ll244/loz1905/SturridgeCHelsea.gif[/[fimg]] In the summer of 2009, his contract at Manchester City expired, and being unable to negotiate a renewal with City, he signed a four-year contract for Chelsea on the 3rd July, for a yet undisclosed fee, decided by a tribunal. He made his debut in our pre-season tour of the USA, scoring the first goal of the match, and impressing many with a very good performance against the Seattle Sounders. He also played against Inter Milan on that tour, winning a penalty which was subsequently converted by the ever-present Frank Lampard. He made his league debut for Chelsea against Sunderland, replacing Didier Drogba in the second half.

Sturridge has also represented England up to Under-20 level, playing alongside such rising Chelsea stars as Scott Sinclair, Ryan Bertrand and Jack Cork. He was also called up to the Under-21 squad. He scored in the final of the European Under-17 Championship against Italy, and also at the recent Under-19 European Championships against Holland."