Sturridge made his first Premier League appearance since August at Anfield after recovering from the thigh and calf injuries that have blighted his campaign.
He marked the occasion by adding to Raheem Sterling's opener with a smart finish from inside the area, and Rodgers could hardly hide his delight.
"It's nice for him, he's obviously been out a long time and worked very hard," said the Northern Irishman.
"It's now about managing his game time and his introduction to the team. When he's in that area of the field, he's shown for us over the couple of years he's been here that he's lethal.
"[He has a] great touch and he's got great power on both sides, so it was a wonderful finish and I'm delighted for him.
"He's come back into the fold and it's just about managing that integration into the team but I know he's really excited about coming into this team to play."
With Sterling impressing again up front for Liverpool and the return of Sturridge, Rodgers has plenty of reasons for optimism as he looks to the remainder of the campaign.
"I'm more concerned by the form of the team," he said when asked about his side's changing prospects, after what was a difficult start to the season.
"I thought Adam Lallana was brilliant today, young [Philippe] Coutinho's two passes [for the goals] were phenomenal, Raheem is an outstanding talent and [it was] a very good finish from him.
"I'm more excited by the whole collective really, there's talents throughout the team and young players who are developing very quickly and it's good to see."
