Liverpool ready to sanction January move for Daniel Sturridge if interested clubs meet £30m valuation

KEY POINTS

Sturridge can leave Liverpool for £30m in January.
Stoke, Southampton and West Ham interested in signing Reds striker.

Liverpool are ready to sanction Daniel Sturridge's transfer during the January transfer window if interested clubs meet their £30m ($40.6m) valuation.

The 28-year-old forward is desperate to leave the Merseyside club in order to play regular first-team football, but the Reds' valuation could prize him out of a move this month.

Sturridge has struggled with multiple injury issues in recent seasons and has failed to play on a consistent basis. He has made just 55 appearances in the Premier League in the last four seasons of which nine are from the current campaign.

The England international has returned to full fitness this campaign, but has fallen down the pecking order and is behind Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane, Dominic Solanke and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain for a place in Jurgen Klopp's front three. He has not been named in the match day squad in Liverpool's last seven league games, indicating that he is not in the manager's plans.

According to the Daily Mail, Sturridge has informed the club of his desire to find pastures new, but it will only happen if interested clubs cough up £30m. Moreover, the forward's £150,000-a-week wages are likely to be a stumbling block.

Stoke City were said to be interested in signing the former Chelsea forward, but they are unlikely to match Liverpool's demands, especially since the Potters are currently without a manager following Mark Hughes' recent sacking.

Sturridge is desperate to play regular first-team football and get back into the reckoning for a place in Gareth Southgate's World Cup squad, but his current situation is likely to have further diminished his chances of making the plane to Russia in the summer.

Liverpool's hefty asking price combined with Sturridge's injury record in recent campaigns is likely to limit the number of clubs that will be willing to take a gamble on the striker. Apart from Stoke City, Premier League rivals Southampton and West Ham United have also been linked with moves.