Daniel Sturridge has said he still has the hunger to achieve “something special” with Liverpool having played his way back into Jürgen Klopp’s plans with an impressive pre-season.

The striker scored his fourth goal of the month in the 4-1 defeat of Manchester United at the University of Michigan Stadium on Saturday, linking well with the new signing Xherdan Shaqiri and once again looking sharp as a second‑half substitute.

Sturridge’s injury-plagued Anfield career appeared to be drawing to a close last season when he joined West Bromwich Albion on loan. He has only 12 months remaining on his contract with no extension talks planned at present. But the 28-year-old’s work this summer has convinced Klopp he can be a valuable option next season and Sturridge is determined to revive his Liverpool career.

“I have always been hungry, you know that,” the England international said. “The hunger will never change. I’m taking every day as it comes with a positive mind-set. That’s all I’m going to do. Pre-season has been going great but, you know, I’m not getting too carried away. It’s just great to be part of the club and helping and making sure that we can win games.”

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The former Chelsea and Manchester City forward believes Liverpool will be in contention for honours under Klopp next season having invested heavily in a squad that reached the Champions League final in May.

“I’m feeling great but it’s not just about me, it’s about the team. It’s about what we do as a bunch. Everyone is pushing themselves to the limit because we have got a big season ahead. We feel we can do something special, so we are all pushing ourselves as far as we can go. I have worked hard over the summer. I’ve put it in, but there is a lot more work still to come.

“I’ll say it again, I’m not getting carried away. I’m just keeping a positive mind-set on everything and I just want to help the team win something. That’s what it’s about. We want to win something. We have been close before a lot of times. I wasn’t here for last season’s Champions League but it was so close, so close. We want to win something.”

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Sturridge joined Albion in January in an attempt to resurrect his World Cup prospects but endured another injury-hit spell as the club, who paid a £3.8m loan fee to Liverpool for the striker, were relegated. He insists there are no regrets. “You know what? It was good. I don’t regret anything. The experience made me grow as a person. That is what it is all about – evolving as a man, evolving as a footballer.

“From the outside looking in, you can also improve. When you are on the inside looking out, you sometimes don’t get to see what you have to do to get to the next level – how you need to change your game. When you are on the inside, you don’t see it. When you are on the outside, you can assess things differently.”