Sturridge facing another month out
Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge is set to miss another month after suffering a calf strain in training.
Sturridge, 25, was thought to be close to a comeback after six weeks out with a thigh problem.
Brendan Rodgers suggested at a news conference on Friday that Sturridge had a chance of playing in Sunday’s Premier League match at Queens Park Rangers – but sources told ESPN that the England forward is likely to be out until mid-November.
Rodgers then confirmed to the Liverpool Echo: “Daniel has pulled his calf. He’s looking at being out for another two to four weeks.
“It’s a big blow as we were looking forward to welcoming Daniel back. He has worked tirelessly, but we have other players training hard and working hard and we will turn to them. It’s why we bulked up the squad in the summer.”
Sturridge hit 21 Premier League goals as Liverpool finished runners-up to Manchester City last season, but has not played for his club since August 31.
He picked up a thigh injury in training with England on September 5, two days after playing 89 minutes for his country in a 1-0 friendly victory over Norway.
Liverpool have won one out of four league matches in Sturridge’s absence, and none of their other recognised out-and-out strikers – Mario Balotelli, Rickie Lambert and Fabio Borini – have scored a top-flight goal so far this season.
Before the news of Sturridge’s new injury blow emerged, Rodgers spoke of how much his absence had been felt.
The manager said: “Dan’s an excellent player, who not only creates space for himself, but also creates space for others.
“If you look at our team over the last 18 months, with the penetration, the ability to break lines and dominate without the ball with runs, Daniel and other players have made us a real threat.
“When you take him out of the team, you’re playing a different game. When he’s playing how he has done, he’s one of the top European strikers.
“But for him to prove that, it’s about playing games. That’s something we hope he can do sooner rather than later.”
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