It has not been a particularly straightforward start to the season for Daniel Sturridge.
Liverpool may be looking down at the rest of the Premier League after 11 matches, but the striker’s role in his team’s rise has been rather limited.
Sturridge, 27, has started only four Premier League games this season, and has been substituted in each one, while he failed to make it off the bench in victories over Crystal Palace and West Bromwich Albion.
Most concerning of all, the former Chelsea and Manchester City forward is without a goal in the league since April and has scored just 12 times in the same competition in the last two and a half years.
Jurgen Klopp’s preference for the more mobile and all-action Roberto Firmino has pushed Sturridge down the pecking order at Anfield, and his future at club level is uncertain as a result.
That is not the case on the international stage, though.
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Sturridge may have expected to again be excluded from the starting XI when England locked horns with Scotland on Friday in their World Cup qualifier, particularly as Harry Kane had made his comeback from seven weeks on the sidelines in Tottenham Hotspur’s 1-1 draw with arch rivals Arsenal last weekend.
Instead, interim manager Gareth Southgate retained faith in the forward who had spearheaded the attack in his two previous games in charge, a 2-0 win over Malta and a goalless draw with Slovenia.
That decision paid off handsomely. Sturridge broke the deadlock at a time when Gordon Strachan’s side were on top, stooping to head Kyle Walker’s fizzed delivery into the far corner. It was a fine finish that few players on the pitch could have replicated.
Scotland made a bright start at Wembley, initially pressing England high up the pitch and snapping into tackles in midfield, where the tenacious Scott Brown and Darren Fletcher were not shy in imposing their physicality on the game.
England were forced into several sloppy moments in the opening exchanges, with John Stones caught in possession twice and fellow central defender Gary Cahill also looking uncomfortable whenever he was closed down quickly.
England had problems playing out from the back throughout, with Scotland benefiting from multiple turnovers in advanced areas. Strachan’s side were never able to take full advantage, though. The visitors were guilty of poor decision-making in some instances, but what let them down most was their profligacy in front of goal.
While there was plenty in England’s performance that was far from perfect, that particular charge could not be levelled at them.
Sturridge, Adam Lallana and Cahill all did brilliantly to guide headed efforts past Craig Gordon, with the clinical edge of Southgate’s side inside the penalty area ultimately the difference.
Sturridge did not contribute a great deal outside of scoring the opener — it was in fact his only effort on goal — but that moment alone was another timely reminder of the fact that he is his country’s most reliable finisher and a player who still has plenty to offer in the right set-up.
It is difficult to see him getting back into the Liverpool team any time soon — although his ability cannot be denied, Firmino is clearly a better fit in such a fluid frontline — but Sturridge remains a key man for his country.
Southgate, who took a big step closer to landing the England job on a full-time basis after Friday’s convincing triumph, is unlikely to forget that in a hurry.
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The Lowdown
Kesari
Rating: 2.5/5 stars
Produced by: Dharma Productions, Azure Entertainment
Directed by: Anubhav Singh
Cast: Akshay Kumar, Parineeti Chopra
IF YOU GO
The flights
FlyDubai flies direct from Dubai to Skopje in five hours from Dh1,314 return including taxes. Hourly buses from Skopje to Ohrid take three hours.
The tours
English-speaking guided tours of Ohrid town and the surrounding area are organised by Cultura 365; these cost €90 (Dh386) for a one-day trip including driver and guide and €100 a day (Dh429) for two people.
The hotels
Villa St Sofija in the old town of Ohrid, twin room from $54 (Dh198) a night.
St Naum Monastery, on the lake 30km south of Ohrid town, has updated its pilgrims' quarters into a modern 3-star hotel, with rooms overlooking the monastery courtyard and lake. Double room from $60 (Dh 220) a night.
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Conservative MPs who have publicly revealed sending letters of no confidence
- Steve Baker
- Peter Bone
- Ben Bradley
- Andrew Bridgen
- Maria Caulfield
- Simon Clarke
- Philip Davies
- Nadine Dorries
- James Duddridge
- Mark Francois
- Chris Green
- Adam Holloway
- Andrea Jenkyns
- Anne-Marie Morris
- Sheryll Murray
- Jacob Rees-Mogg
- Laurence Robertson
- Lee Rowley
- Henry Smith
- Martin Vickers
- John Whittingdale
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Quick pearls of wisdom
Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”
Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.”
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
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What are the GCSE grade equivalents?
- Grade 9 = above an A*
- Grade 8 = between grades A* and A
- Grade 7 = grade A
- Grade 6 = just above a grade B
- Grade 5 = between grades B and C
- Grade 4 = grade C
- Grade 3 = between grades D and E
- Grade 2 = between grades E and F
- Grade 1 = between grades F and G
THE CARD
2pm: Maiden Dh 60,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
2.30pm: Handicap Dh 76,000 (D) 1,400m
3pm: Handicap Dh 64,000 (D) 1,200m
3.30pm: Shadwell Farm Conditions Dh 100,000 (D) 1,000m
4pm: Maiden Dh 60,000 (D) 1,000m
4.30pm: Handicap 64,000 (D) 1,950m
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Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
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The specs
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