'Sturridge can get straight back to it'
Ian Rush has no doubt that Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge can hit the ground running immediately once he makes a much-anticipated return from injury in the near future.
The prolific 25-year-old, scorer of 36 goals in just 52 games, has not featured for his club since participating in an impressive dismantling of Tottenham Hotspur on August 31 after suffering a thigh injury with England.
But manager Brendan Rodgers revealed last weekend that he expects Sturridge to be available for selection when the Reds resume domestic duties with a journey south to face Queens Park Rangers next Sunday.
The news was warmly welcomed by Rush, the man who remains the record plunderer in Liverpool history with 346 strikes, and therefore holds an innate understanding of what the No.15's comeback could mean for his former side.
"It's a massive boost," the Welshman explained to Liverpoolfc.com. "We have missed Daniel, he's a quality player. With the international week, there's even more time for him to come back from his injury.
"You look at the game against Tottenham, when Sturridge, [Mario] Balotelli and [Raheem] Sterling played - there were goals in the three of them and they were absolutely fantastic.
"It will be a big boost to have Daniel back and hopefully get the side going again. We had a good win [against West Bromwich Albion] so what we're looking for now is to maintain that."
Asked for an assessment of the difficulty for a striker to complete a seamless reintroduction to the demands of top-level competition, Rush reported no concerns. "It can be difficult but he has had a good pre-season," he said.
"I think it will be pretty normal for him - he'll get straight into it. He's a naturally fit player so I think he'll walk straight in. I don't think it will be a problem."
Rodgers' charges secured a crucial victory in Sturridge's absence against the Baggies, with the goals arriving from midfield in the form of Adam Lallana's first for the team and a second-half winner by Jordan Henderson.
Notable too was a cameo for Steven Gerrard in an advanced position for the denouement of the clash, switching from what has now become his standard berth at the base of the Liverpool midfield.
Rush added: "There are different options for Brendan. Look at the West Brom game, for the last 20 minutes Stevie moved forward and he seemed to be really enjoying it.
"When you've got all of those players, one thing you're going to get is goals. If we can stop them going in at the other end, we can get that confidence going again."