Perth Glory is delighted to confirm that former Liverpool and England forward Daniel Sturridge has signed with the club for the A-League 2021/22 Season.
The 32-year-old is a two-time UEFA Champions League and FA Cup winner who scored 68 goals during a six-year spell at Liverpool and also won a Premier League title with Chelsea.
At international level, he was part of England’s squad at both the 2014 FIFA World Cup and 2016 UEFA European Championships and featured for Team GB at the 2012 Olympics in London.
Sturridge is now relishing the prospect of beginning a new chapter in his illustrious career with Glory.
“It’s a fantastic opportunity to try a new challenge,” he said.
“When the opportunity came about, it felt like the right thing to do, to take my talent somewhere where I can enjoy my football in a competitive league and try and help the team be as successful as they possibly can be.
“I’m going to put my best foot forward, work hard and try and help the team win each game that comes by and then we’ll see where we end up when the season finishes.
“I can’t wait to play at HBF Park and hopefully put a smile on a lot of faces.”
Glory Head Coach Richard Garcia is understandably thrilled to have a player of Sturridge’s pedigree on board.
“Daniel’s quality on the park speaks for itself,” he said, “and it is fantastic for the club and the league that a player of Daniel’s calibre is joining us.
“His motivation and drive aligns with the values and ambitions of the team and the club as a whole.”
Glory Chairman and Owner Tony Sage, meanwhile, believes that Sturridge’s signing represents a huge statement of intent upon Glory’s behalf.
“Daniel is undoubtedly one of the biggest signings not only in Glory’s history, but in the history of the A-League,” he said.
“His arrival signals in no uncertain terms how determined we are to bring sustained success to the club and the lengths we will go to in order to achieve that goal.
“We know the elite-level quality Daniel will bring to the side and are hugely excited to see him wearing the famous purple this season.”
Those sentiments were echoed by Glory CEO Tony Pignata.
“It’s great that we have managed to put this deal together in such a short amount of time and we welcome Daniel to Perth Glory FC,” he said.
“I would urge anyone who hasn’t already become a Glory Member for 2021/22 to sign up as soon as possible and be a part of what is shaping up to be a thrilling year of football.”
Born in Birmingham, Sturridge played his youth football with Aston Villa, Coventry City and Manchester City, making his senior debut for the latter in 2007.
Two years later, he signed a four-year deal with Chelsea for a fee which would eventually rise to $15m and during his spell at Stamford Bridge, the 1.88m frontman played nearly 100 games and scored 24 goals.
Another big-money move followed in 2013, this time to Liverpool, with Sturridge being named in the PFA Team of the Year at the end of his first full season in red after bagging 24 goals in all competitions.
He added another Champions League winner’s medal to his collection in 2019 and eventually took his Premier League goal tally to 77.
Most recently, Glory’s new recruit had a spell in the Turkish top flight with Trabzonspor for whom he found the net seven times in 16 appearances.
Sturridge comes from a family steeped in football, with his father Michael and uncles Dean and Simon all having played professionally in the UK.
Make sure you don’t miss a moment of our new marquee man in action – grab your 2021/22 Membership HERE.
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