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Daniel Sturridge has revealed how Liverpool's forward-thinking approach convinced him to sign for the club back in 2013.
The Reds recruited the forward from Chelsea as part of a deal worth £12million
Sturridge hit the ground running with four goals in his first five Premier League games.
He reached even greater heights during the following campaign as Liverpool narrowly missed out on the Premier League title, netting 22 goals
A member of Chelsea's squad prior to heading to Anfield, Sturridge has now lifted the lid on his decision to sign for the Reds
Key to this transfer was Liverpool's data-driven 'Moneyball' approach, which places a focus on making recruitment choices based on underlying statistics relating to players.
A relatively new concept at the time for football, Sturridge was left stunned by the information he was being fed during the courtship phase.
Sturridge
"It was how they relayed their plan to me of what they wanted to do and what they wanted to achieve,"
“They talked a lot about the statistics; the Moneyball type of thing. I think I was one of the first players, if not the first, that they'd signed with that in mind, which was all based on stats.
“Things such as conversion rates - they were like 'You don't get many opportunities, but when you play, you score, and also this and this, and we've seen this other thing too'.
“I was like, 'This whole thing you've put up in front of me is blowing my mind a little bit'. I really liked the way they were thinking.
"The manager, Brendan Rodgers, was a forward-thinking, attacking, free-flowing coach as well, so it just made perfect sense, because I wasn't playing every game prior to that,"
“I've been someone who isn't content being a big team simply to just be there. I want to play. If that means leaving to play for somebody else, so be it.
“So, when Liverpool came, it was like 'This is an unbelievable football club and if they want me, I'm going'."
Had it not been for various injury setbacks during his Liverpool career, Sturridge would likely have added to his grand total of 67 goals for the club
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