Raheem Sterling was open to the idea of a Liverpool return, according to reports. The winger has instead joined Chelsea.
This comes from the Athletic. They claim that Raheem Sterling was open to a Liverpool return as he prepared to leave Manchester City this summer.
Sterling left Liverpool as a 20-year-old in 2015, a few months before Jurgen Klopp took over at Anfield. He’s since enjoyed an up-and-down time with City, moving between periods of being a star player and periods where he struggled to make a serious impact.
It was always clear that he’d leave the club this summer and Wednesday confirmed that. Sterling has joined Chelsea after Liverpool failed to make any sort of move. Chairman Todd Boehly described Sterling as a ‘serial winner’ and ‘an important step in strengthening’ his new squad.
Raheem Sterling was open to a Liverpool return
It was highly unlikely that Liverpool would sign Sterling for at least three reasons. Firstly, there isn’t room for another forward right now – especially one that commands a sizeable transfer fee.
On top of that, the Athletic reports that Chelsea will pay Sterling £300,000 per week. That’s a wage that Liverpool wouldn’t justify, essentially ruling out a move right there.
But even if the Reds could find space for Sterling and pay his wages, we find it highly unlikely that City would actually sell to Liverpool. The two of them battle for the title every year and selling to one another seems out of the question right now. We imagine Liverpool were literally at the bottom of the list when it came to potential clubs to sell to.
We don’t doubt that Sterling would have been open to the move, though. The fact is, he’d almost certainly thrive in this Liverpool side under Klopp. Whether we’d actually want him back is another question but it’s easy to see how he’d have fit in.
It wasn’t to be, of course, and Liverpool will face their former wonderkid in a different shade of blue next season.
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