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Under the arches behind London Bridge, Daniel Sturridge stood six inches away from the World Cup and dreamed of seeing James Bond lift it this summer.

Bond, James Bond. The man who can do it all.

“That’s what I call Steve Gerrard,” explained England hitman ­Sturridge. “He doesn’t like it, but I call him that because he can do everything.

“On a day-to-day basis in training, you have to see it to believe what he can do with a football.”

As Liverpool striker Sturridge seconded his captain for club and country to MI6, sport’s most coveted trophy – 15 inches high and cast in 18 carat solid gold – almost shook on its plinth as a commuter train rattled overhead.

Tempting as it was to cradle the cherished pot – on a world tour of 90 countries covering 100,000 miles – the Three Lions' hitman dutifully complied with protocol:

“I just wanted to grab it, but FIFA only let you touch the World Cup if you’ve won it and I didn’t want to get locked up.

“It was strange because you see the World Cup as a kid and you dream about winning it – and you always imagine what it would be like to win it and touch it.

“But there was a time, only a couple of years ago, when I was scared I would be lost to the game. I had fallen out of love with ­football when I could not get in the team at Chelsea. To stand so close to the World Cup, in the hope I will be playing for it this summer, made me appreciate the journey I’ve been on.”

Sturridge grew up a goal-kick from Villa Park in Hockley, a tough Birmingham neighbourhood that is no stranger to crime.

“When people tell me I have a deadpan expression, sometimes that’s a reflection of where I come from,” he explained. "You couldn’t show your emotions, or look at people in a certain way, because you can’t be sure how they are going to react.

“Playing football is the one place where I’ve always felt at home, been able to express myself, felt able to be outlandish. I would say I am ­misunderstood because I am actually very outgoing, I like to have fun.”

Sturridge’s signature goal ­celebration, the ‘Studge’ – and there have been plenty of them among his 32 goals in 35 starts for the Anfield giants – is a true expression of his ­personality, not premeditated ­choreography.

He felt “deprived” of the ­opportunity to express himself in dance more often at Chelsea until Brendan Rodgers pulled his £12million master stroke in the transfer market and paired Sturridge with Luis Suarez.

(Image: John Powell)

They have got on like a house on fire - 47 goals between them to date this season, although their telepathic double act will be replaced by rivalry when England and Uruguay’s orbits collide in Brazil on June 19.

“I didn’t even known we had drawn Uruguay until I went in for treatment on my ankle at the training ground and Sebastian Coates [Liverpool's Uruguayan defender] told me,” said Sturridge.

“Next day I saw Luis, and we had a joke about it, but it will be great to play against him because he’s a world-class player and a great friend of mine."

"When the season finishes, I’m going to steal all his boots and his shinpads!

“But it’s a good sign for Liverpool that we had five players in England’s starting line-up last week.

"I’ve grown up with Jordan ­Henderson in ­international age groups, Raheem Sterling is like a little brother and I’m very close to him, Glen Johnson is a top-class player and then there’s James Bond... Stevie has got the lot, hasn’t he?

“If ever there was a player who deserved to finish his career with a Premier League winner’s medal or a World Cup winner’s medal it’s Steve Gerrard.”

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As ambassador for the FIFA World Cup™ Trophy Tour by Coca-Cola, Daniel Sturridge is encouraging Great Britain to celebrate the FIFA World Cup™ and be healthier and happier by moving more, more often. Find out more at