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by DAVID MADDOCK

Daniel Sturridge has admitted it is “hard to take” when he is left out or substituted by Jurgen Klopp as he wants to play every minute.

The striker was an unused substitute in Thursday’s Europa League defeat to Villarreal and has been in the starting line-up in just three of the last seven games.

After an injury-hit season the England forward is now fully fit and told the Mirror: “Maybe people don’t see this, but I am someone who wants to play every minute of every match, so maybe when I’m not starting or when I’m taken off, it’s hard to take.

“You want to be on the pitch every single match, every single minute.

“It’s exciting, of course, what the manager is bringing and where we are heading. I am doing everything in my power to be out there on the pitch, and I am feeling good as well.”

And although he insisted he still has many ambitions at Anfield, speaking earlier this week at a Sainsbury’s Active Kids promotion, he didn’t commit his future to the club.

“There are things I want to achieve with Liverpool. I would never say I am Liverpool until I die, because I would be lying.

“I think any player who says ‘oh yeah, this is the only team I will play for, for the rest of my life’, they are deluded. In football every team looks for replacements every single year.

“So for myself all I can do every weekend is go out there, perform as well as I can, perform to the best of my abilities, and then come the end of the season hopefully have the European Championships to look forward to…and to next year.”

He added: “I’m feeling so good right now, feeling great and my body is at a level where I’m able to play however many games a week repeatedly and not break down.

“I am so ambitious, so hungry right now for success that it is hard to put it into words.

“Now I’m in a place where I feel amazing, and I feel ready. My body feels great, I’m ready to play every game for the team.”