Sturridge will be 28 on Friday and, even though he isn’t guaranteed a game in the World Cup qualifier against Malta on the day, an England call-up from Southgate was celebration enough.
And it is all down to his Liverpool boss, Jurgen Klopp, who has never given up on the injury-jinxed striker despite the lengthy spells he’s spent on treatment tables.
Southgate decided to give Sturridge another chance to prove his fitness following a call to Klopp before he picked his squad.
It wasn’t an easy one given the rift that developed between England and Liverpool – during Roy Hodgson’s England reign – over Sturridge’s fitness and training.
But Southgate revealed: “Jurgen was very positive about Dan.
I think it’s good to have him back involved in the squad
England manager Gareth Southgate
“He feels he had a very strong pre-season, then picked up an injury in Germany which curtailed that a little bit but he’s a player who can score goals in the biggest games.
“We’ve not seen him for six months and I think it’s good to have him back involved in the squad.”
Southgate hopes competition for first-team places at Liverpool will bring out the best in Sturridge.
The striker is joined in the 28-man squad by three debutants – Watford’s former Chelsea midfielder Nathaniel Chalobah who is England’s most-capped youth international, Leicester City defender Harry Maguire, and Everton’s £30million goalkeeper Jordan Pickford who steps up from the Under-21 squad.
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