Raheem Sterling is not mentioned in the media as often as he used to be. There is a logical explanation for this. At 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 as a key player in Pep Guardiola’s side. But after the 2021/22 season, Rahim decided to leave the “townsmen”. He moved to Chelsea, where he became one of the club’s highest-paid players.
It was probably not just about money. In his final season at Manchester City, Sterling started to get a little less playing time, although he was still decent. Raheem’s performance 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 interested in the option with the London club. In the summer of 2022, he moved to the Blues for 56 million euros. Both parties had high expectations for cooperation, but the reality turned out to be different.
At Chelsea, Sterling was a far cry from the level he showed at Manchester City. He did the same as before – attacked, broke into the opponent’s penalty area and used dribbling, becoming the best player of the “blues” in attempts to pass. However, nothing worked. The London club often changed coaches, each of whom had their own requirements for the players. New football players were constantly coming. On the one hand, it increased competition. On the other hand, it made it chaotic, since no order could be traced.
With the move to Chelsea, Raheem lost everything but money. He lost his 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 hoping for. With the arrival of Enzo Maresca as the head coach of the Blues, things became even more difficult. 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 Turin club did not withdraw his salary. The exchange at Manchester United for Jadon Sancho also remained at the level of rumours. The situation became more and more difficult.
Before the transfer window closed, Arsenal appeared and agreed to rent Raheem. This transfer surprised both fans and experts. Everyone expected that the Gunners would sign a star forward – someone like Victor Osimkhen, or at least Ivan Toney, who has proven himself well in the Premier League. But this did not happen – the Nigerian moved to Galatasaray on loan, and the former player of Brentford left for Saudi Arabia. As a result, the club, which is fighting for the championship, signed a football player who clearly gave up. Why?
The simplest explanation is Sterling’s connection with Arteta. Both worked at Manchester City and held each other in high regard after parting ways. Arteta was Guardiola’s assistant at the time, and Raheem was gaining momentum at the Etihad. In England, it is noted that it was Mikel who influenced the football player’s progress. This is confirmed by the statistics: Sterling spent his most productive seasons at Manchester City under Arteta.
The 2017/18 and 2018/19 seasons were the best in Raheem’s career in terms of performance. In one campaign, he scored 33 points according to the goal + assist system (18+15), in the other – 30 (17+13). In the 2019/20 season, Arteta left Manchester City for Arsenal, but Sterling still scored 20 goals. It 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, act 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 some sense in the transfer of Sterling to Arsenal. Arteta did not just reunite with his former protege. He got a super-motivated player who wants to win the championship 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 missing 2 years at Chelsea, Sterling is still among the top five most effective players in the Premier League since his debut in 2012 (123 goals, 63 assists).
Having failed to sign a centre-forward, Arsenal have really lost nothing by taking Sterling on loan. Without him, the Gunners scored 91 goals last season in the Premier League (the second most after Manchester City). Even more can come out with it. 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, it will all make sense.
The Arsenal boss is rumored to be unhappy with Gabriel Martinelli, who lacks consistency. Competition with Sterling will definitely encourage the Brazilian. The Gunners still have Leandro Trossard on the left flank of the attack, but Arteta, as before, considers him only as a joker. Raheem can also play on the right wing, taking the pressure off Bukayo Saka, who currently has no replacement. In addition, Sterling can play both in the center forward position and under him. That versatility, as before, with him, Arteta just needs to restore the confidence of the player and then this transfer can play an important role in the fight for trophies.
Text: meta.ua/sport
Source: sport.ua