da prosport bet： Since the days of teenage sensation Michael Owen, no Liverpool youngster has come under as much pressure as Raheem Sterling.
da supremo： On the pitch, he’s carried the Reds for large portions of the campaign, recording the most goals, assists, chances created and successful dribbles of any Liverpool player in the Premier League this term despite constant shifts between the front-line, the midfield, and the wing-back positions, and until the turn of the year was Brendan Rodgers’ only dependable player in an otherwise malfunctioning squad – particularly whilst filling in as an emergency centre-forward during Daniel Sturridge’s five months on the sidelines.
Off the pitch, the Anfield outfit are pulling out all the stops to try and extend the 20-year-old’s contract past summer 2017.
Back in December, captain Steven Gerrard went public in insisting Sterling should sign a new deal, whilst club icon John Barnes declared in February that a move away from Merseyside could ruin the forward’s career. Sky Sports pundit and former Reds captain Jamie Carragher, likewise, claimed last Monday that Sterling’s now endangering his relationship with the Anfield fanbase. Cynics, like myself, will view these comments from the Liverpool alumni as more design than coincidence; especially in Barnes’ case, a fellow Kingston, Jamaica-born forward whose represented the Reds and England.
Meanwhile, Liverpool’s contract offers have jumped from £90k per-week to £180k per-week over the course of the last few months, which would make Sterling the club’s top earner next season. They understandably view Sterling as an integral component in their immediate and long-term plans, and are resultantly prepared to pay a salary better than what the Three Lions star could realistically find on the market.
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Staring Sterling in the face however, during every Liverpool fixture, during every Liverpool training session, is the motivation he needs to resist signing on the dotted line – a 34-year-old Steven Gerrard, amid an unceremonious – and at times unsavoury – end to a largely underwhelming career.
That may seem like a bold statement to make regarding a Champions League winner and former England captain, currently the only player to score in an FA Cup, League Cup, UEFA Cup and Champions League final, who will go down in the history books as one of Merseyside’s greatest ever footballing sons.
Yet, Gerrard will also be remembered for the scarcity of silverware throughout his career, wearing the armband during the Three Lions’ worst-ever World Cup campaign and most particularly, as the most talented England international of all time not to win a domestic title. There was no great conspiracy, no dispute over his abilities; the dynamic midfielder could have played for Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich or Manchester United at virtually any point over the last two decades – he almost signed for Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea in 2005 – but constantly turned down offers from European football’s finest institutions in favour of his boyhood club.
Worldwide recognition of his undying loyalty – a rare trait in Football’s corporate era – might be enough consolation for the departing skipper, but Sterling is, quite clearly, of a different mould. And although he owes a lot to Liverpool, the club that spring-boarded him to the Premier League and international stage, he is neither Mersey-born nor academy-made, trading QPR’s youth set-up for the Reds’ back in 2010.
And the fact of the matter is that Sterling can do better than this Liverpool side. Brendan Rodgers is a talented manager with a squad of promising players, but the Reds are still leaps and bounds behind Chelsea and Manchester City, whilst Arsenal and Manchester United are moving back towards genuine Premier League title contention.
The Anfield outfit may pick up some trophies over the next few years – they’re a strong bet for this season’s FA Cup – and Champions League qualification is a realistic short-term aim. Yet, having already reached talisman status for Liverpool at just 20 years of age, earning him the 2014 Golden Boy award – the most prestigious honour a European youngster can win – clearly Sterling is already capable of challenging for superior accolades.
There’s been a lot of talk about money and greed surrounding Sterling – the idea that finance is influencing his decision-making. But what act is truly the most materialistic? Accepting £180k per-week to become the next Steven Gerrard, a Liverpool talisman whose world-class ability will never translate accurately into silverware, or moving to a European superpower who will offer him less money and less game-time, to see his talent recognised in trophy form?
Money doesn’t last forever but history never ends – Sterling wants to be remembered in the annals of the beautiful game for his success, not his loyalty.
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