#7 | Raheem Sterling - 2020/21 Performances

[Deleted member 77198]

Glad to see him playing on the right again.

Definitely, he is a completely a different player on that side

 

[mosssideblue]

Definitely about opinions, which this forum lets us share.

I am not refusing to accept obvious flaws, because if they're obvious then everybody can see it. I have no bias for Sterling, anybody whose seen my comments know I try to be impartial to all players.

What I'm doing is looking at Sterling's qualities, and not going overboard to say he has an "obvious flaw".

There is a spectrum that I think people on here ignore, and always go to extremes when talking about a players qualities, it doesn't go:

Bad at this thing OR Great at this thing, there is a medium in between where players are just kind of average, slightly above or slightly below.

Sterling is bad or has an "obvious flaw" at 1on1 finishing, I'm not denying that, but to say claim he has so many other "obvious flaws" is imo, very naive, when you have to consider he is Pep's "go to" winger for 5 years, he wouldn't be playing him if he had "so many" flaws. People seem to ignore that for some reason.

Do you think he has the skills and consistency necessary to command salary commensurate with Kev for example?

 

[HelloCity]

All about opinions, but I think you are simply refusing to accept his such obvious flaws. Can he improve, time will only tell

Of course he can improve, after all he was amazing 17/18 and 18/19 and was also very good for the first third and last third of last season. He had that dip in the middle of last season after the England clash but came back all guns blazing after lock down.

I think mentally he’s had to put up with a lot over the last few years but his form does seem to dip a lot when something bad happens.

It won’t be too long until has back to his best again I’m sure.

 

[WallyA]

Do you think he has the skills and consistency necessary to command salary commensurate with Kev for example?

These questions are so weird, as they move the goalposts to try to make a point.

Kevin is the best #10 in the world. Sterling is not the best winger in the world (Neymar is better).

Kevin is the better player, he should get paid more. Has nothing to do about the main discussion though.

 

[Deleted member 77198]

Of course he can improve, after all he was amazing 17/18 and 18/19 and was also very good for the first third and last third of last season. He had that dip in the middle of last season after the England clash but came back all guns blazing after lock down.

I think mentally he’s had to put up with a lot over the last few years but his form does seem to dip a lot when something bad happens.

It won’t be too long until has back to his best again I’m sure.

I hope so. I hope my frustrations and his form are put to bed, that would be great. I’m just not sure they will be.

 

[mosssideblue]

Of course he can improve, after all he was amazing 17/18 and 18/19 and was also very good for the first third and last third of last season. He had that dip in the middle of last season after the England clash but came back all guns blazing after lock down.

I think mentally he’s had to put up with a lot over the last few years but his form does seem to dip a lot when something bad happens.

It won’t be too long until has back to his best again I’m sure.

I hope you are right

 

[HelloCity]

Do you think he has the skills and consistency necessary to command salary commensurate with Kev for example?

Is that of a concern to you? All I know is that, yes, Sterling is out of form, but a Sterling on form is a huge asset.

This is from a couple of months ago and Kane will be ahead now but his record is still phenomenal.

 

[Craig]

I disagree with so much.

When running at high speed it is usually harder to control the ball quickly. Slower players have an easier time with this, but at a stand still to just receive a pass there is no problem.

What do you mean by ability to kick the ball properly or accurately? He isn't a glamourous finisher, but he finds the back of the net alot so clearly he can be accurate, and his passing accuracy is nothing to complain about.

Decision making? This is just 1on1s, Sterling almost always passes correctly and accurately when building possession and passing to the right person on counters. Again, the passing isn't super creative like KdB, but it's simple and accurate.

He gives possession away because he is always trying something, this is instructed by Pep, he wants our wingers to make something happen. If you want him to play safe all the time then that's your difference in belief to Pep. He isn't perfect here, he can release the ball sooner, but you can see him attracting 2 or 3 players to him and then try and find a man for overloads or breakaways.

Easily dispossessed when he attracts 2 or 3 players or when "trying something". But definitely not in general, this is like the comment saying he isn't strong, Sterling is incredibly strong.

So yeah, 1on1 is my main issue with Sterling. Not saying he can't improve other things, but those things are not something to really complain about as they are atleast fine. There is a reason he has been Pep's number 1 winger for the last 5 years.

Some defence of him there mate. His decision making is one of his biggest problems and it’s far from just 1 on 1’s. Time to think and he often picks the wrong option. Classic example was the other night after KDB played him in and was 10 yards away waiting for a simple pass inside. Raz just waited too long and then bizarrely ran straight into Shaw. Obviously anyone can pick the wrong option at times but it was so simple and not unusual. It’s his biggest problem and a big reason why despite great numbers he doesn’t look like a great player.

He’s also not a great clean striker of the ball but I don’t think that would be much of a problem if his decision making and composure was better. Good to se him back on the right and hopefully his form improves in time along with his confidence. No doubt he has a hell of a lot to offer especially once dribbling well again on the right but he will always have that infuriating side to his game for the reasons mentioned by quite a few people on this thread.

 

[Deleted member 77198]

Is that of a concern to you? All I know is that, yes, Sterling is out of form, but a Sterling on form is a huge asset.

This is from a couple of months ago and Kane will be ahead now but his record is still phenomenal.

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Barely any of my frustrations with Sterling are about his goal scoring, although he does miss big chances in the biggest of games and is woeful at 1v1s.

It’s almost fully about his general play.

 

[HelloCity]

I hope so. I hope my frustrations and his form are put to bed, that would be great. I’m just not sure they will be.

Why aren’t you sure? He’s proven to be one of the best players in Europe in his position. He’s had 2 bad half seasons in over 4 years and for the rest of that time he’s been excellent. We’d be screwed without his ginormous contribution in that time and wouldn’t have had all the success we have done.