Daniel Sturridge, the Chelsea striker on whom Stuart Pearce is relying for goals in his Team GB side at the London Olympics, may have to pull out of the squad after undergoing tests for suspected meningitis.

Having missed out on Roy Hodgson's England Euro 2012 squad, Sturridge was this week selected by Pearce and was due to be handed his favoured central striking role. But Sturridge is now a doubt for the tournament, which begins with a match against Senegal at Old Trafford on July 26, after undergoing medical tests.

The results will be assessed by Football Association medical staff over the coming days, with the squad due to meet at the Team GB holding camp in Loughborough at the weekend.

A training camp in Spain will follow, before a warm up match against Brazil at Middlesbrough's Riverside stadium on July 20.

Pearce is unlikely to make an immediate decision on Sturridge's involvement and has until 25 July to decide on a potential replacement if the player is forced to withdraw.

It is understood that Sturridge fell ill over the weekend and that Chelsea club doctors and specialists have been monitoring his progress while they await test results. His condition is believed to have improved over the past 24 hours.

Although it has not been made public by the FA, it is understood that the four players currently on the standby list are the Norwich City defender Ryan Bennett, the Reading goalkeeper Alex McCarthy, the Huddersfield striker Jordan Rhodes and the Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha. Either Rhodes or Zaha would appear to be the natural replacements for Sturridge should he not make it.

However, the four players on the standby list can technically be replaced by any others on the original long list of 35 up to 25 July, the eve of the first match. The four players named as being on standby at that point can then be called into the squad at any time during the Games if an injury occurs.If he was forced to pull out, it would also be the latest injury blow to Pearce's plans. Tottenham Hotspur's Gareth Bale withdrew from contention for the squad at the end of last week after aggravating a back injury. Others who would have been in contention had it not been for injury include Bale's teammate Kyle Walker and Manchester United defender Chris Smalling.