#7 | Raheem Sterling - 2020/21 Performances

[BillyShears]

Think @Ric will have to lock this thread when his new deal gets announced. Hahahaha. People are smoking strong stuff thinking the guy Pep dropped Rodri and Ferna for is getting sold.

 

[SOR_21]

Needs to be sold, he's just become an expensive benchwarmer with the rise of Foden. Foden and Mahrez are now the first choice wingers with Torres and Jesus as rotation options. Bernando is there as extra cover for both winger positions.

 

[mosssideblue]

Think @Ric will have to lock this thread when his new deal gets announced. Hahahaha. People are smoking strong stuff thinking the guy Pep dropped Rodri and Ferna for is getting sold.

Why do I always get the impression your user name initials mean something else :)

 

[argyle]

Really doesn't deserve a new contract on his form this season.

 

[bluemoon32]

I've stuck up for him loads of times but i'll never understand how players can have the touch of a sunday league player and yet still rise to the top of the game.
There are times i think he's wearing triangle boots

 

[fredmont]

He played because he's the only player in our squad with the instinct and timing to run in behind. We used to have multiple players who would run in behind, and two midfielders whose first instinct was to play through passes into that space.

Sterling and Sané (and Agüero over shorter distances) had the pace and timing to get in behind defenders even when the opposition dropped deep. Didn't matter if they were on their own 18-yard line, David Silva and De Bruyne's passing was so perfectly weighted and the runs so well-timed that we would routinely get to the byline and create chances.

Now we only have De Bruyne who plays the ball through, and only really Sterling who is a natural at making those runs. I think that makes us much easier to play against for a team willing to play a back five with two defensive midfielders in front.

I absolutely agree that Sterling has a great knack of being in the right place at the right time. Unfortunately the story ends there. His control, reaction time (especially) ,final pass and ability to put the ball away have been lacking for a long time. Also, he very rarely beats his man.
Pep has given him so many chances, most surprisingly yesterday, but he appears to find it impossible to recreate his best form, or anywhere near it.

 

[meltonblue]

Thought he was better than others last night tbh, both attacking and defending wise. All their good attacking moves came from a switch to Chilwell and all ours in the first half in particular were down the left hand side.

I get some of the criticism in general though.

 

[King-General]

It's so sad that it became like this. He got a lot of good attributes, but he will never be a world-class player. And that's mostly of his poor decision making and his below par shooting abilities. I think it's time to cash in on him. And definitely not reward him with a new payrise.

 

[ProofMCFC]

When ederson put him through over the top I didn’t even get out of my seat. For a professional player playing for a top club it’s criminal that that’s the reality. needs going ASAP

 

[RayCTID]

Is there much of a market at the min though? I’m not sure there is and we won’t want to sell him on the cheap.

There is not market but they want him to commit to a new deal but they don't want to lose him for nothing.

 

[Mike N]

When ederson put him through over the top I didn’t even get out of my seat. For a professional player playing for a top club it’s criminal that that’s the reality. needs going ASAP

I’ve used that very phrase on here before about when Sterling goes through on goal. He won’t score, he always messes up.

 

[Exeter Blue I am here]

Think @Ric will have to lock this thread when his new deal gets announced. Hahahaha. People are smoking strong stuff thinking the guy Pep dropped Rodri and Ferna for is getting sold.

That may well be the case, but it’s not something I would necessarily regard as a cause for celebration. He may make the kind of frequent and well timed runs Pep wants, he may still have decent stats (albeit diminishing), but we no longer play the way that brought out the best of Raheem 2 or 3 years ago in my opinion, and even allowing for the undeniable confirmation bias inherent in many of his detractors’ assessments of his capabilities, the lack of control running with the ball, the badly weighted passes, the ceded possession and the scuffed shots have to be considered in the round too and they are not something I think it reasonable to spend £250k (or however much it is) a week on.
The club clearly disagrees and that’s all that ultimately matters, but whether that is born out of unswerving and enduring appreciation of Raheem’s attributes, or fear of the modern day reality of players running down their contracts, I’m less sure. Personally I think City are trapped between the devil and the deep blue sea due to the impoverished nature of the post Covid transfer market, but a long term commitment to a player who’s likely to cost us a fortune in wages, is not something I’d relish on someone so demonstrably out of form for so long, and if I’m being honest then if I thought there was an interested party offering a realistic fee and a deal Raheem were happy to accept, I’d let him go without too much soul searching. If, going forward, we’re not going to play in a way that brings out the best in the lad, and Foden and Mahrez continue in their recent veins of form in the longer term, then what’s the point?

 

[hilts]

When ederson put him through over the top I didn’t even get out of my seat. For a professional player playing for a top club it’s criminal that that’s the reality. needs going ASAP

He was never going to control that first time and get a shot away. It was a positive sign he didn't fall.over though

 

[ProofMCFC]

He was never going to control that first time and get a shot away. It was a positive sign he didn't fall.over though

Thing is if foden was playing in that position like he should of been, I’m pretty sure he would of brought it down a lot better. Ah deary me baffling.

 

[hilts]

Thing is if foden was playing in that position like he should of been, I’m pretty sure he would of brought it down a lot better. Ah deary me baffling.

Without doubt. Changes the whole game but there you go it's not like the manager isn't aware of his obvious weaknesses.

 

[eastmanc]

Thing is if foden was playing in that position like he should of been, I’m pretty sure he would of brought it down a lot better. Ah deary me baffling.

Could not understand the reason for his selection in such a huge game when his form has been so poor and Foden has been so good.

 

[wolviedinho]

In the past he was unplayable and undroppable. Today he is no good. We need to move him on at the very least in January but we will probably keep him until next summer when we are forced to take a reduced fee.

 

[Gundogan's Moustache]

I’ve used that very phrase on here before about when Sterling goes through on goal. He won’t score, he always messes up.

He was never going to control that first time and get a shot away. It was a positive sign he didn't fall.over though

Thing is if foden was playing in that position like he should of been, I’m pretty sure he would of brought it down a lot better. Ah deary me baffling.

On form it’s baffling how Torres didn’t start.

 

[cityboy1]

On form it’s baffling how Torres didn’t start.

Pep doesn't want him on the left it seems and on the right he's ineffective. In the middle aguero was ahead of him so he wasn't coming on not that i think it would have made a difference.

 

[FromPollockToSilva]

Thing is if foden was playing in that position like he should of been, I’m pretty sure he would of brought it down a lot better. Ah deary me baffling.

Foden might not make the run in the first place, though. That’s why Pep keeps coming back to Sterling