LONDON: Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge admits he is desperate to finally make his comeback this weekend after a five-month injury lay-off.
Sturridge has not played since injuring his thigh on international duty with England in early September, having sustained a calf problem and a further thigh injury during the rehabilitation process.
But the 25-year-old returned to training with the rest of the Liverpool squad this week and he is pushing Reds boss Brendan Rodgers to include him against West Ham at Anfield on Saturday.
"I've been champing at the bit," Sturridge told BBC Sport.
"I'm ready now -- it's been a long time coming, but I am happy with how everything has gone and I am looking forward to it. I won't hold back from anything."
Despite Sturridge's obvious enthusiasm to get back in action, Rodgers said on Thursday that he would wait 24 hours before deciding if the England international will be involved in the Premier League fixture.
"He has looked outstanding in training, but we will give him another day," Rodgers told a press conference.
"I will have a chat with him (on Friday) and overview the week, how everything has gone, but in my brief conversation with him (on Thursday), I can tell he is happy and feeling very strong in his own body.
"At this moment, he looks in top-class condition."
It was during a sprint while training with England that Sturridge pulled up after feeling a twinge in his thigh.
He immediately withdrew from England's squad to face Switzerland and was ruled out for several weeks.
On the eve of his comeback, Sturridge suffered a calf problem and then, much to his dismay, he sustained another thigh injury just as he was about to come back.
The former Chelsea and Manchester City striker spent the Christmas period in Los Angeles to aid his recovery and found it hard watching his team slip further and further down the league.
"I'm not a very good watcher," he said. "I don't like watching too much but I had to.
"I watched every single match when I was in the States -- I was getting up early doors in the morning, so sometimes it'd be 4am depending on where I was and what time the game was.
"I'd get up early and it was important for me to see how we played, the formations and the style of the new players.
"But it was hugely important (to go out there) and I am thankful to the guys over there who helped me out."
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