Thursday 26 January 2017 12:24, UK
Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher has questioned Daniel Sturridge's all-round contribution in Liverpool's EFL Cup semi-final defeat to Southampton on Wednesday evening.
The Reds lost the second-leg tie 1-0 at Anfield to exit the competition 2-0 on aggregate, with Sturridge missing two gilt-edged second-half opportunities to get his side back on level terms.
The England international, who was chosen by manager Jurgen Klopp to spearhead Liverpool's attack after only being a substitute in Saturday's 3-2 loss to Swansea City, volleyed over from close range on both occasions.
And Carragher thinks Sturridge's diminished pace is now hampering his game.
"Sturridge is a completely different player now to when he first came to Liverpool," said the former Liverpool vice-captain.
"You could link him with Sadio Mane when he first came because the whole point of Liverpool buying Sturridge under Brendan Rodgers when I was at the club was that he gave us penetration in behind, he had pace.
"But there was one occasion in the game where he fell over into the hoardings in front of the Kop and I thought he had to get that ball. I don't know if his pace has completely gone or whether he's that worried with injuries that he pulls out of something.
"Sturridge is not the player to run in behind, so you can forget about him replacing Mane. All he does is come to feet now."
When Sturridge doesn't score it's like playing with 10 men
However, with Sturridge now struggling in front of goal - the 27-year-old has scored just two goals in the Premier League this season - Carragher has questioned whether Klopp can continue starting with the forward.
"The only reason to have Sturridge in the team is for his finishing ability," he said. "You've basically got to put things on a plate for him. Liverpool did that against Southampton and he didn't finish.
"More often than not you cannot question his finishing but he doesn't do anything else in a game now, whereas he did when he first came. He's had a really poor night in front of goal.
"That's the case with that type of striker now, if they're not a target man, or don't run in behind, everything has got to be put on a plate. So when he doesn't score you're basically down to 10 men because they are not offering anything else whatsoever.
"You have to criticise Sturridge tonight because he missed chances, but when you look at his Liverpool record - his finishing and goal-to-game ratio - it's fantastic. But I'm talking about his pace and his overall game because when he doesn't score it's like playing with 10 men."
