LIVERPOOL BOOST AS STURRIDGE RETURNS TO FULL TRAINING

The striker, who has been plagued by a series of injury problems, joined his team- mates at Melwood for the first time since picking up a knee problem in October. Liverpool received a major boost on Tuesday with the return to first team training of Daniel Sturridge, Goal can confirm. The striker, who picked up a knee problem ahead of Jurgen Klopp’s first game in charge against Tottenham in October, has played just 241 minutes of football this season, scoring two goals against Aston Villa on his comeback. The development is seen as another step in the England international’s recovery, and is unlikely to feature against Premier League leader Manchester City on Saturday evening. Klopp revealed ahead of the defeat to Crystal Palace that he would not rush Sturridge’s return, saying: “He needs time so that we can bring him back to good shape. "Once he starts training properly, I will talk about when Daniel can play. At the moment, it is like he has had another summer break. He needs to train hard before I can really talk about him playing." The 26-year-old was initially expected to make a speedy recovery after a training ground collision with Jordon Ibe on October 15. However, he still had “fluid in his knee” according to Klopp, and only started doing outdoor work again prior to the Palace encounter. Last term he managed only 18 appearances in all competitions, which makes Klopp’s risk-averse approach sensible given the forward’s struggles. Sturridge will be closely monitored by Liverpool’s medical team as he continues his rehabilitation. The club will hope their premier marksman’s injury problems become a thing of the past as they look to enter the top-four discussion and push on in Europe as well as the Capital One Cup. James Milner and Ibe, meanwhile, trained on Monday after recovering from hamstring and knee strains and are in contention for the trip to the Etihad Stadium.