Sky Sports’ Super Sunday coverage nearly descended into chaos after a fire alarm ruined Daniel Sturridge’s pre-match analysis.
The ex-England striker was stopped in his tracks while previewing the clash between two of his former clubs, Chelsea and Liverpool.
Sturridge spent over three years at Stamford Bridge before heading to Merseyside because of the depth of competition in his position.
The 35-year-old drew upon the stark contrast at the Blues over a decade later, with only Nicolas Jackson capable of leading the line.
Sturridge was in the midst of referencing several of his old teammates when a fire alarm cut through the studios.
The retired England international told Sky Sports: “[Chelsea] had the likes of Didier Drogba, Nicolas Anelka, and Andriy Shevchenko.
“We’re talking about some of the greatest strikers in the history of the game…”
It was at this point that Super Sunday host Kelly Cates, daughter of Sir Kenny Dalglish, was forced to cut across Sturridge.
A fire alarm had been blaring out around the studio, but Sturridge had been attempting to plough on with his pre-match preview, while Roy Keane and Jamie Redknapp were also unmoved on either side of him.
Sky host Cates explained: “We should just point out to people we’re not just sitting here blithely ignoring the fire alarm.
“It’s just a test; they’ve already announced it, in case the microphones are picking those up.”
Keane and Redknapp both let out grins, while Sturridge humourously added, ‘test, 1,2,3’ to simulate an audio calibration.
When Sturridge was allowed to resume, the Birmingham-born star insisted Enzo Maresca will be successful at Chelsea if he is given time.
He added: “It’s obviously been an up and down season, as everybody’s been aware of.
“They’ve had injuries to pivotal players in the squad, and how they’ve performed statistically this season is close to last year.
“So I wouldn’t say it’s been a terrible year, but I think the expectation would be that they would be performing better on the pitch.
“The performances aren’t quite there, the football isn’t quite how it should be, but I think… going forward, they will improve.
“It does take time, managers nowadays don’t get as much time sometimes as they deserve.”
