Liverpool have wasted little time in their attempts to correct the mistakes of the last transfer window by completing the €14.8m signing of Daniel Sturridge from Chelsea.

The 23-year-old made the first significant move of the new year yesterday when he signed a long-term contract at Anfield. His wages were not disclosed but a salary of €80,000 had been discussed. He was not registered in time for the Premier League home game against Sunderland but could make his Liverpool debut at Mansfield Town in the FA Cup third round on Sunday.

Brendan Rodgers has been desperate for additions to the Liverpool forward line since a calamitous end to the summer window, when Andy Carroll was allowed to join West Ham United on a season-long loan and Fenway Sports Group, the club’s owner, refused to back the manager’s pursuit of Clint Dempsey.

Striker’s attitude

The Liverpool manager could have signed Sturridge for €18.5 million in the summer but wanted a loan deal because of doubts over the striker’s attitude. Subsequent talks with coaches who have worked with the England international, and Sturridge himself, have allayed Rodgers’s concerns.

Ian Ayre, the Liverpool managing director, has held protracted talks with Sturridge’s representative, Octagon, for several weeks to conclude the deal early in the January window. Ayre has also been working on a deal for Tom Ince of Blackpool and Liverpool hope to remove Joe Cole from their wage bill with his former club West Ham and Queens Park Rangers keen on a move.

Sturridge, who scored 24 goals for Chelsea since joining the club from Manchester City in 2009, and has four full England caps, said: “I am humbled and happy to be here. Brendan Rodgers said he sees me here for a long time – and I also see myself here for a long time.

“I’ve not signed here to play for a couple of years and then move on. I’ve signed to be here for as long as possible. It’s a humongous club and to have the fans and world-class players we have here is amazing.”

Guardian Service