The future of Raheem Sterling at Manchester City has been the subject of speculation for eighteen months now.
The England attacker has one year left on his deal and it is widely reported he won’t sign another contract.
Raheem Sterling finds himself in a peculiar position under Pep Guardiola. His playing time has been limited in favor of Phil Foden. The very same Phil Foden he keeps out of the England team in his role as their best attacking midfielder.
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Pep Guardiola is notoriously brutal when he decides he no longer needs a player. Just look at how Leroy Sané was eventually sold to Bayern Munich.
As well as that, the signing of Haaland signals a reconstruction of their attack which moves even further away from Sterling.
Once thought to be destined for Real Madrid, Raheem Sterling is now not the easiest player to find a home for. One rumor that’s been gathering pace in the last few weeks is that he could sign for Chelsea.
As a Londoner, Chelsea makes sense for Sterling. As a world-class player, Sterling makes sense for Chelsea. However, perhaps more than any other team in history, Chelsea have shown that signing a world class player is no guarantee the move will work out.
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Considering they are about to offload £90 million Romelu Lukaku less than a year after signing him, Chelsea have to be sure about how they’re going to use Sterling. There is pressure on Thomas Tuchel to get the talent identification right, too.
Both of his major signings from last year, Lukaku and Saul, were disastrous. As a result, the 2021 Champions League winners took a step back after it looked like they were building to compete with Liverpool and City.
Whoever signs Sterling will be getting a good deal. Still just 27, he has a few more elite seasons left in the tank. With the world cup coming up, the most important factor for the player will be enough minutes in a well defined role.
Can Chelsea be trusted to give him that?
