Liverpool's Daniel Sturridge (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)
As a kid, Liverpool forward Daniel Sturridge prayed every morning and every night. Now with 76 goals and 214 English Premier League appearances to his name, Sturridge does the exact same thing.
“My prized possession is probably my Bible,” he said in 2016. “It’s important to me because I’m very religious. I believe you have to pray, as well as work hard, in order to get what you want from life.”
Sturridge made his Premier League debut with Manchester City at age 16. He appeared in 13 games and started twice as part of Chelsea’s title-winning team in the 2009-10 season. In January 2013, he moved to Liverpool, his current club. He scored 21 goals and recorded seven assists in his first full season with the team, helping lead Liverpool to a second-place finish in the league.
When he was named Premier League Player of the Month in August 2013, he quoted Philippians 4:13 in a tweet.
I do all trough Christ who strengthens me. Thanks to my teammates,family and the fans. I'm nothing without you #lovepic.twitter.com/NIJOxxKNaD
Sturridge has also made 41 appearances for the English national team. He’s scored 12 goals for his country, including one in the 2014 World Cup and a game-winner in the 91st minute at the 2016 European Championships.
After the goal, he gave thanks to God.
“It’s a great feeling. Unbelievable,” he told the BBC following the game. “I am grateful for the opportunity from the gaffer and I am grateful to God for allowing me to score.”
This season, Sturridge’s contributed two goals in 14 appearances for a Liverpool team that’s one point back of Manchester City for first place in the Premier League with nine games remaining. Should Liverpool prevail, it would be the club’s first league title since the 1989-90 season.
Arsenal's Eberechi Eze walks of the field following a win over Tottenham, Nov. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein)
Eberechi Eze had an ambitious and specific prayer ahead of his first North London derby on Sunday. The Arsenal attacker asked God for a hat trick, something that hadn’t happened in a game between Arsenal and their local rivals Tottenham since 1978.
Only three players had ever accomplished the feat. But sure enough, Eze became the fourth, scoring his three goals in the span of 36 minutes and leading Arsenal to a 4-1 victory. After the game, he was quick to credit the faith that has helped sustain him throughout his career.
“It’s what I prayed for,” he told NBC Sports. “I prayed for it today, man, a hat trick. And I got it today, so I’m grateful to God. … That was the prayer today: a hat trick. And God gave it to me. That’s faith, man.”
The 27-year-old found the back of the net on both sides of halftime to extend the Premier League leaders’ advantage to 3-0. He added a third in the 76th minute to complete his hat trick and seal the win.
The game carried a special significance for Eze, who grew up an Arsenal fan and was released by the club as a youth player. He found his way to QPR and then Crystal Palace, where he established himself as one of the Premier League’s most creative players.
After scoring the goal that won Palace the FA Cup last season, Eze decided he was ready for a new challenge. He appeared destined to join Tottenham, but Arsenal came in with a late offer before the summer transfer window closed. The opportunity to return to his boyhood club, which was coming off back-to-back second-place finishes, was too good to pass up.
“I can only thank God for the opportunity to be here, to be playing and to be recognized in this type of manner,” he said in an interview with the club website once his move was official. “For me, this is what I wanted to do. [The club] is in me, it’s part of me and I just feel so blessed. That just gives me more energy to keep pushing and keep working.”
Eze has started eight of Arsenal’s 12 Premier League games this season, contributing four goals and two assists. He has also appeared in all four of the team’s Champions League games, and scored for England during the most recent international break.
Following Sunday’s historic performance, Eze took to Instagram to celebrate. His caption was just one word: Jesus.
Now playing for one of the biggest clubs in the world with aspirations of winning a Premier League title, leaning on his faith allows Eze to stay focused on his ultimate purpose.
“I’ve grown up in a Christian household, regularly going to church,” he told The Athletic in 2023. “For me, it’s hugely important, simply because of the peace of mind it gives me. It allows me to regulate myself and put things into perspective.
“Football can get super intense and you can get caught up in it all, but my faith allows me to realign my focus and know there’s something greater and that there’s a deeper purpose as to why I’m in the position I’m in.”
He says his faith in Jesus helps keep him steady amid the highs and lows of life and being a professional athlete.
“I’ve learned in myself that staying rooted in Christ throughout all the different phases is the most important thing because it allows you to see things with the right lens,” he said recently in another interview. “Things will change. Things go up, things go down, you don’t know what’s around the corner, you don’t know how things may look. The one solid rock and foundation is Christ. Having that allows me to deal with whatever circumstance I’m in.”
Arsenal are six points clear at the top of the Premier League table heading into a crucial week. They host German powerhouse Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday (3 p.m. ET) and visit Chelsea on Sunday (11:30 a.m. ET) in a meeting of the Premier League’s top two teams.
Manchester City's Jeremy Doku chases after the ball against Liverpool on Nov. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Jon Super)
The buildup to Sunday’s showdown between Manchester City and Liverpool centered around the 1,000th game of Pep Guardiola’s legendary managerial career coming against City’s greatest rival during his time at the club. The teams have combined to win the last eight Premier League titles, finishing in the top two spots on three occasions.
By the time the final whistle blew to make City’s 3-0 victory official, however, Guardiola was no longer the story. His left winger, Jeremy Doku, was.
In the first half, the 23-year-old Belgian international drew a penalty kick (though it was missed by teammate Erling Haaland) and led all players in just about every attacking statistic outside of goal contributions.
It was one of the most impressive individual Premier League performances in recent memory, and Doku did it while being subbed off in the 74th minute. He became the first player to score, win 10 duels, complete seven dribbles, create three chances and put three shots on target since fellow countryman Eden Hazard did so for Chelsea in 2019.
Now in his third season at City after joining from French club Stade Rennais, Doku is playing some of the best soccer of his career. He has three goals and four assists in 16 appearances across all competitions so far this season. Six of his seven goal contributions have come in the Champions League or Premier League.
Asked by NBC Sports on Sunday whether he felt like he’d taken his game to another level, Doku attributed his excellent form to a deeper relationship with God and the role faith plays in his life.
“What changed for me this season, I have God in my life,” he said. “That’s what changed, and that’s what you can see. On the pitch, I have His presence with me. That’s the difference. I’m just happy that now I can just deliver the way I want to play without any fear or doubt or anything.”
To celebrate the goal, Doku pointed to himself, wagged his finger and pointed to the sky. He wanted everyone to know that it was about the Lord, not him. It’s been a busy past two months for Doku off the field too, as he has gotten married and baptized.
His baptism followed a two-assist performance in a victory over crosstown rival Manchester United on Sept. 14.
“As a Christian, when you get baptized, your old nature, your old sinful nature dies, and you start living with God,” he told the BBC while discussing his baptism. “You resurrect with God, with Jesus Christ. You can do that as a kid but normally it’s meant for when you’re older and you really realize what you’re doing.
“… It’s the center of my life. There’s nothing more important to me than faith.”
Doku also recently began releasing a documentary series on YouTube that gives fans an inside look into his life off the field. He explained in a clip promoting the documentary that his main reason for doing it is to share the Gospel. He wants his testimony to inspire others.
“I don’t care about the money the YouTube is going to make, how many viewers, I don’t care,” he said. “But if I can open someone’s eyes or heart, open someone’s mind, to see what I saw, and to go deeper in his Christianity, I’m happy, you know? Even if it’s one person.”
Faith is a focus in many of the shows. In Episode 4, “Back to Ghana After 17 years,” Doku references Matthew 25:40 when talking about his desire to serve others.
“I just want to be a giver as well and help people in need,” he said. “That’s what God says: ‘If you give to the least, you give it to Him.’ Doing everything I’m going to do here, that’s the most important part for me: the charity and helping the people in need because that’s what I can give back with the talent that God gave me.”
Doku was included in Belgium’s 26-man squad for its upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Kazakhstan (Nov. 15) and Liechtenstein (Nov. 18). The Red Devils are currently atop their qualification group and on track to reach the World Cup in the U.S. this coming summer.
City return to action following the international break on Nov. 22 when they visit Newcastle United.
THIS IS THE GET IN THE GAME PODCAST
WITH SCOTT LINEBRINK
Our guest today is Graham Daniels, a former pro soccer player and coach who’s now the general director at Christians in Sport in the United Kingdom.
Host Scott Linebrink talks with Graham about the intersection of faith and sports, as Graham shares his personal journey to faith, the importance of sharing the Gospel within the sports community, and the unique cultural influence of sports as a platform for evangelism. They discuss the challenges athletes face regarding identity, the role of grace, and how gratitude can lead to a life of service.
Graham Daniels just wrapped up recording Spiritual Game Plan in Cambridge, UK! 🎤 Can’t wait to finish the audiobook! This book shows how to link your faith with your love for sports in a liberating, deeper way—beyond guilt or just evangelism. Stay tuned! pic.twitter.com/23wkm1W5ST
Notre Dame women's soccer player Izzy Engel. (Photo courtesy of X/@NDSoccer)
Izzy Engle netted a hat trick in her second collegiate game. She scored two more times in her third. The next four games all featured at least one goal or assist too.
By the time Notre Dame’s 2024 regular season ended, Engle had produced 15 goals. She then scored in four consecutive postseason games — one in the ACC Tournament and three in the NCAA Tournament — as Notre Dame knocked off No. 1-seed Mississippi State and reached the Elite Eight. The awards and honors came pouring in: ACC Freshman of the Year. All-ACC first team. Top Drawer Soccer Freshman of the Year. United Soccer Coaches second-team All-American.
Engle is living a dream. Her parents, aunt and uncle all went to Notre Dame, so she grew up attending Fighting Irish football games. Playing soccer for the school was always the goal, but she was determined to keep an open mind during her college recruiting process. Coaches knew Notre Dame was her dream school and would ask her if they even had a chance. She would tell them “yes.” And she meant it.
She liked the schools she visited. But in the end, they just weren’t Notre Dame.
The Edina, Minnesota, native arrived in South Bend in the summer of 2024 ready to embrace the challenge ahead of her. She knew she would encounter adversity, so she braced herself for it as best she could, trying not to take anything for granted.
“My high school and club experience coming into Notre Dame for sure prepared me very well,” she said in a recent appearance on Sports Spectrum’s “What’s Up” podcast. “I was used to adversity. I had some injuries that you had to battle though. Having those experiences, I knew the season was not going to be easy and nothing’s going to be given.”
Her freshman year was a season of incredible highs, as well as some difficult moments. Engle’s strong faith in God helped her avoid getting caught up in the hype and push through the struggles.
“When things were going well, I knew who to give glory to,” she said on the podcast. “I knew it was not on my own. When things didn’t go well … I knew that those valleys, they’re temporary. I’ve got God and I’ve got my teammates to get me through it.”
Growing up in a Christian family, Engle is grateful for what she described as a “boring” testimony. Jesus has always been part of her life, and she specifically prayed that she would find ways to grow in her faith at Notre Dame. That prayer has been answered in ways that even she didn’t expect.
“Having that foundation and knowing that no matter what I go through, no matter if I feel alone, I’m never alone and God is always with me. When you’re going into something so new and so unfamiliar, knowing that everything else might be changing but He is unchanging, that was for sure something that I leaned on,” she said.
Engle was immediately invited to church by teammates and is part of a team Bible study. She is also part of an organization called Notre Dame Christian Athletes and is taking on more of a leadership role now as a sophomore.
This summer, Engle — who also has Brazilian citizenship through her mother — helped the U.S. women’s U-20 national team qualify for the 2026 World Cup and served as captain in the semifinals of the Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship against Canada. The U-20 World Cup will take place in Poland next September.
As hectic as her life is, Engle still manages to find little moments to reflect and think about how grateful she is to be playing the sport she loves at her dream school in an environment that helps her grow closer to the Lord.
“It’s been really special to see what God’s been doing in this place, working in my team, working in me, and working in some of the other girls,” she said on the podcast. “It’s also cool to be becoming more of a leader in my faith and having the courage to step out and allow myself to grow and see who God created me to be.”
Notre Dame hosts No. 11 North Carolina (7-3) in its next game Wednesday. Kickoff is at 6 p.m. ET.
