Raheem Sterling is set to join Chelsea after agreeing personal terms with the West London outfit, said Fabrizio Romano on Wednesday. The 27-year-old had direct talks with manager Thomas Tuchel and will be among their highest-paid players next season.
Raheem Sterling accepted Chelsea as future destination weeks ago after direct talk with Tuchel – and personal terms fully agreed, he’ll be among best paid players. 🚨🔵 #CFC
Chelsea and City, set to agree final fee around £45m and then it will be completed. pic.twitter.com/he08wImBKH
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 6, 2022
Sterling made 47 appearances in his final season at Manchester City, scoring a respectable 17 goals with nine assists. But he was unhappy at the constant squad rotation by Pep Guardiola. The England international started only 23 of 38 Premier League games and five of 12 in the Champions League despite being a key player, so he’s joining Chelsea to be their star player.
Although Pep Guardiola has sanctioned a move for Sterling as his request, he’ll miss the 27-year-old. Since his 2015-arrival from Liverpool, Sterling has scored 131 goals with 94 assists from 337 games, bagging double figures for Premier League goals in each of the last five seasons.
Chelsea are paying £45m for the England international, but City would struggle to sign a player of Sterling’s ability for the same price, especially if they were homegrown. Jack Grealish is coming off the back of a poor debut season with six goals with four assists from 39 games, but he’ll have to step up in Sterling’s absence.
In other news, Kevin Campbell says Man City will keep ‘fantastic’ Bernardo Silva for one more season