Sturridge steals show on Super Sunday with initiation song and Keane impression
Daniel Sturridge bought a new energy to the Super Sunday panel - and finished off by singing an Usher hit.
The former Chelsea and Liverpool star has signed for Sky Sports as their new pundit after his career was hampered by injuries, with his most recent spell on the pitch coming with Perth Glory in Australia in 2022.
He was giving his thoughts alongside Roy Keane and ex-Man City teammate Micah Richards, who have become known as quite the double act themselves. Sturridge, flamboyantly dressed in a white vest and jacket, was at Stamford Bridge for the meeting of two of his former teams, who played out a 1-1 draw.
During his Super Sunday debut the 33-year-old stole the show, engaging in banter with both Richards and Keane whilst also coming up with a new phrase that could stick,
The initiation song
Sturridge was reminded late in the day by anchor Dave Jones that he hadn't been put through the customary process of an initiation song. Despite many new teammates at clubs doing everything to avoid it, the former Premier League star was only too happy to oblige.
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After quickly consulting with Richards he dropped some lyrics from the song 'Nice and Slow', released by Usher in 1998, which became the American rapper's first number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Sturridge, without hesitation, sang the lyrics: "It's seven o' clock, on the dot, I'm in my drop top, cruisin the streets." It left his colleagues stunned before the new man said: "sometimes you've got to drop a vibe". Keane, with a smirk, joked: "where did it all go wrong?"
Impersonating Roy
That wasn't Sturridge's only comical interaction with Keane across the course of the afternoon. The Irishman has become a regular in the Sky studio, often giving a no filter verdict. He and Richards were having a conversation before the coverage began and were quizzed on which of their colleagues was the biggest baby.
They banded around several names, including Gary Neville and Jamie Redknapp. Later in the day, as they reflected on Mohamed Salah storming off having been substituted, Richards claimed that Sturridge, whom he played with at City, would have done similarly.
He was quick to reject that accusation, having been called "a baby". That term had been used by Keane on Andy Robertson last season and Sturridge opted to tackle the Irish accent, hugging Keane seconds later before continuing with his point.
The Sky Sports debutant did underlined his admiration for the former Manchester United boss however as they discussed how much he would be worth in the modern day. In light of fees paid for the likes of Declan Rice and Enzo Fernandez, Sturridge suggested that Keane would command a fee of £150m nowadays.
Stanky leg
Earlier in the day Tottenham had drawn 2-2 with Brentford in their first game of the post-Harry Kane era. Brentford equalised from the spot through Bryan Mbuemo and Sturridge claimed the Bees forward was: "Prone to making defenders do the stanky leg - I don't know if you know what that is?"
He was describing how defenders often stick one leg out when they've been wrong footed, with little chance of winning the ball, often giving away a foul.
Later he was happy to give a video impression of what he called a stanky leg, which is the name of a song and dance, released well over a decade ago.
Route to Sky
Sturridge enjoyed the best season of his career back in 2013/14, when Brendan Rodgers was in charge as Liverpool narrowly missed out on the title. Jurgen Klopp didn't afford the striker the same role in his team and injuries meant he was rarely selected, leading him to have a short-lived spell on loan at West Brom.
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He had a brief stint in Turkey before he headed Down Under to play in the A-League with Perth Glory. Sturridge was released by the Australian club in June 2022 and has been without a club since. He's been particularly active on social media, often previewing Champions League games.
The former marksman enjoyed an impressive punditry debut last term and has now been hired for the forthcoming campaign. "The Premier League season kicks off and I am excited to be a part of it all with Sky Sports," he said after the news was announced."
"I'm looking forward to using my experience on the pitch and bringing this insight to the fans watching at home."
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