Remember 2015, when Raheem Sterling had a brutally ugly holdout that saw him leave Liverpool and join Manchester City, for about £49m?
Well, I guess there wasn’t too sharp a rate of depreciation on his value, over the last seven years, because he’s now set to transfer to Chelsea for about £45 million (plus add-ons).
The final transfer fee has not been certified as of yet, but personal terms have been agreed, and this deal should be made official rather soon.
According to ESPN: “Sterling could join his new teammates on Saturday’s flight to the United States, where the Blues are embarking on a three-game preseason tour.”
Sky Sports, like ESPN, is reporting that Sterling is set to become the Blues highest paid player.
And that means the Jamaican born English international will be paid quit handsomely, as Chelsea’s current top earner, N’Golo Kante, is taking home £290,000-a-week.
Once it’s official, Raheem Sterling would move into rarified air- guys who have played for half of the big six.
Even playing for two of these six clubs, during the course of one’s career, is rather uncommon. Featuring for three is extremely unique.
But as Sky Sports wrote: “Pep Guardiola has repeatedly stated ‘I don’t like to keep players that are unhappy’ and was open to allowing Sterling’s exit this summer, even to a Premier League rival.”
And we all know that Sterling wants out, as that’s common knowledge. He even turned down Tottenham, but a move to this London club might make sense, as Chelsea are still trying to find themselves in attack and some players in the final third will be moving on this summer.
Romelu Lukaku is already gone, and Hakim Ziyech will probably be next.
Although don’t rule out the idea of Christian Pulisic leaving as well. Chelsea are reshaping their attack this summer transfer window.
City are too, with Sterling now joining Gabriel Jesus out the exit door to a fellow big six rival.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net) and author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” as well as “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune, and he co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast, part of Edge of the Crowd Network. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.