Raheem Sterling is now mentioned in the media not as often as before. There is a logical explanation for this. In Manchester City, the 29-year-old Englishman spent probably the best period of his career, becoming a four-time Premier League champion. Sterling scored and assisted a lot, being an important player in Pep Guardiola’s team. But after the 2021/22 season, Rahim decided to leave the “citizens”. He moved to Chelsea, where he became one of the club’s highest-paid players.
Probably, it was not only about money. In his last season at Manchester City, Sterling began to receive slightly less playing time, although it was still decent. Rahim’s productivity decreased, and with it the impact on the team’s game. Here came Chelsea with new owners, a new project and a new challenge. The football player was attracted by the option with the London club. In the summer of 2022, he moved to the “blues” for 56 million euros. Both sides had high expectations for cooperation, but the reality turned out to be different.
In Chelsea, Sterling was very far from the level he showed in Manchester City. He did the same thing as before – he attacked, broke into the opponent’s penalty area and used dribbling, becoming the best player of the “blues” in terms of passing requests. However, nothing worked. The London club often changed coaches, each of whom had their own requirements for the players. New players were constantly coming. On the one hand, it increased competition. On the other hand, it made it ugly, since no order could be traced.
With the transfer to Chelsea, Raheem lost everything except money. He lost his self-confidence, his star status and his place in the England team. A total of 14 goals in 2 seasons in the Premier League is not the result that everyone was counting on. With the arrival of Enzo Maresca as the head coach of the Blues, everything became even more complicated. The specialist said that he does not count on Sterling and advised him to look for a new club. The Englishman was linked with Juventus, but the Turinese did not withdraw his salary. The exchange to Manchester United for Jadon Sancho also remained at the level of rumors. The situation was becoming increasingly difficult.
Before the transfer window closed, Arsenal appeared and agreed to rent Raheem. This transfer caused bewilderment among both fans and experts. Everyone was waiting for the Gunners to sign a star forward – someone like Viktor Osymkhen, or at least Ivan Touna, who has proven himself well in the Premier League. But this did not happen – the Nigerian moved to Galatasaray on loan, and the ex-Brentford player left for Saudi Arabia. As a result, the club, which is fighting for the championship, signed a football player who clearly surrendered his position. Why?
The simplest explanation is Sterling’s connection with Arteta. Both worked at Manchester City and held each other in high esteem after parting ways. Arteta was Guardiola’s assistant at the time, and Raheem was gaining momentum at the Etihad. In England, they note that it was Mikel who had the greatest influence on the football player’s progress. This is confirmed by statistics: Sterling spent his most productive seasons in Manchester City under Arteta.
The 2017/18 and 2018/19 seasons were the best in Rahim’s career in terms of performance. In one campaign, he scored 33 points according to the goal+pass system (18+15), in the second – 30 (17+13). In the 2019/20 season, Arteta left Manchester City to join Arsenal, but Sterling still scored 20 goals. This was his best score in one season in the Premier League. At Manchester City, Raheem became an explosive and versatile player. He began to choose positions correctly, operate effectively in the opponent’s penalty area and use his dribbling to the maximum. And Arteta helped him in all this.
Based on this, it can be assumed that there is a certain meaning in the transfer of Sterling to Arsenal. Arteta didn’t just reunite with his former protege. He got a super-motivated player who wants to become a champion again and return to the England team. Playing with Chelsea in the Conference League and fighting with the Gunners for all the trophies are different levels of motivation. Rahim is not yet 30. He has every chance to restart his career. Despite the fact that Sterling lost 2 years at Chelsea, he is still among the top five most effective players in the Premier League since his debut in 2012 (123 goals, 63 assists).
Failing to sign a centre-forward, Arsenal actually lost nothing by renting Sterling. Without him, the Gunners scored 91 goals in the last Premier League season (the second most after Manchester City). It can be done even more. The English mass media write that Rahim is already starting to “wind up” his partners in training. It seems that Arteta has already got down to business. If the coach can squeeze out of Sterling at least 70% of what he showed at the Etihad Stadium, that will make sense.
Rumor has it that the Arsenal coach is not very happy with Gabriel Martinella, who lacks stability. Competition with Sterling will definitely cheer up the Brazilian. The Gunners still have Leandro Trossard on the left flank of the attack, but Arteta still considers him only as a joker. Raheem can also play on the right wing, taking the pressure off Bukayo Saka, who now has no substitute. In addition, Sterling can play both in the center forward position and under him. This versatility is still with him, Arteta just needs to restore confidence in the player, and then this transfer can play an important role in the fight for trophies.
Text: meta.ua/sport
Source: sport.ua