Liverpool v Manchester United: Daniel Sturridge is good enough for Brazil, claims team-mate Philippe Coutinho Sturridge's 15 goals in 19 games for Liverpool in all competitions are in stark contrast to his difficult period at Chelsea, posing the question as to why the London club were to swift to abandon them given how little faith they have in those strikers he left behind at Stamford Bridge. The England striker needed 56 games to score his previous 15, a reflection of a stop-start career, with Sturridge not shown the faith to deliver as emphatically as he is doing on Merseyside. Indeed, while Roy Hodgson may consider himself in the grip of a striker shortage heading into the forthcoming World Cup qualifiers, Philippe Coutinho - the chief supplier for many of Sturridge's strikes - believes his team-mate would be good enough to play for tournament hosts Brazil if he fancied switching nationalities. "Of course he could," said Coutinho. He's similar to a Brazilian player in his style because he's quick with the ball at his feet. He's a fantastic player, so, yes, he has the qualities to be a Brazilian player. He also scores a lot of goals, which is always good. He is an excellent footballer, always making the right runs at the right time. He helps us combine and that's the good thing about the relationship we have. He's a fantastic player to play with. When Luis returns I think we will have two of the best strikers in the Premier League together so I'm really looking forward to playing with both of them. Regardless of Liverpool's run without Suárez, there will no dilemma for Rodgers, who is still counting the hours until deadline day before beginning formal celebrations for having resisted the sale of the Uruguayan. Ahead of Manchester United's visit, Rodgers mused on where his club might be had he signed Sturridge six months earlier, when he considered the initial £15 million valuation too risky without further due diligence. "He wouldn't have been far away being the top scorer in the league if he'd played all last season, and I think he will show that this season provided he gets his games in and stays clear of injury," said Rodgers. There's a lot made of Luis's absence, of course. He's a terrific player. But if you look at the numbers, since he has been out of the Chelsea game in the six Premier League games we've had we have scored 12 goals and only conceded one. Daniel Sturridge played up top in nearly every game. We have shown that without Luis in the team we don't have that reliance. He's a top player and we want him in there, but it's not what the ethos is all about.