'I didn't dive' - Sturridge on 'disappointing' draw; the alleged dive, & his injury

Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge put in a man of the match performance against Manchester City this afternoon, and after game, he revealed his disappointment at not picking up all three points.

In his post-match interview, Sturridge observed:

"We’re gutted to be fair. We should’ve came out of game with three points.

"It’s disappointing, but it’s 3 points against the champions, so we’ll take that"

When he arrived at Anfield, Reds coach Brendan Rodgers warned that Sturridge wasn't match-fit, but with four goals in his first six games, that clearly hasn't been a problem:

"The first few games I lacked fitness, but I feel sharp now, and I feel more like myself, and there’s more to come from me, and I was pleased with the performance"

If Sturridge can score regularly when he's not fully-fit, just imagine what he can do when he's in tip-top shape (!). In the build-up to the the 23-year old's goal, Edin Dzeko was on the ground injured, and Liverpool didn't put the ball out of play, but Sturridge claims the team did nothing wrong. He said:

"From our viewpoint, the ref said to play on and said not to kick it out. It’s not our job to kick it out. so we played on, and if that's what the ref says then we'll follow it"

Sturridge also received a booking for an alleged dive, but he strongly refutes the contention that he took a deliberate tumble:

"It wasn’t that I actually dived. I lost my footing, and I apologized to Joleon, and told him ‘look, I didn’t dive’. I didn’t dive. I’m not a player that dives, and I didn’t dive here".

During the first half, Sturridge's mobility noticeably decreased as the result of an apparent injury, and after the game, he confirmed that he picked up a knock:

"I think I’ve tweaked a muscle. I did it in the first half, and afterwards I couldn’t sprint. I couldn’t really open up properly. Hopefully, it’s not too serious. I’ll get a scan from the Doctor, and hopefully I’ll be okay for next week’s game"

Some of Sturridge's play was a joy to behold; he's brilliant at holding up the ball; has great close control; uses the ball intelligently, and oozes self-confidence whenever he's in possession. Fantastic signing so far, and his partnership with Luis Suarez is destined to be very effective for Liverpool.

Jaimie Kanwar

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