Sturridge keen to 'soak up' World Cup experience

After an excellent season at Liverpool, in which Sturridge scored 21 Premier League goals, the 24-year-old looks certain to lead the frontline for his country alongside Manchester United's Wayne Rooney.

Roy Hodgson's men have been drawn in Group D with Uruguay, Italy and Costa Rica, and Sturridge intends to make the most of his first World Cup.

"I'm very excited," he told Liverpool's official website. "I think players wait their whole careers to have this opportunity to go to a World Cup and I'm one of those players.

"I'm looking forward to it. I'm looking forward to the training camps just as much as playing the first game. I'm going to soak up everything and be like a sponge when I'm out there, and just take everything in.

"It's important for me and the other players to understand that it's a great occasion and to embrace it. I don't feel there should be any form of pressure on us.

"It should be about enjoyment and about playing with smiles on our faces. I'm doing cartwheels and front-flips inside but I'm not going to show it."