A statement from Raheem Sterling’s camp has been roundly criticised after the winger was left out of the Chelsea squad for the match against Manchester City. Sky Sports‘ Super Sunday experts.
Sterling was not included in Chelsea’s squad for their opening game of the season and in a statement released just before kick-off, his camp said they wanted “further clarity” on his future at the club.
The decision to make such a public statement ahead of the game was criticised by Jamie Redknapp, Micah Richards and Daniel Sturridge…
Sterling’s full statement
A Sterling spokesperson said:
“Raheem Sterling has signed a three-year contract with Chelsea Football Club.
“He returned to England two weeks early for individual training, had a positive pre-season under the new manager and developed a good working relationship with him.
Notable absences from Chelsea’s squad for Manchester City clash
“He is more committed than ever to performing at the highest level for Chelsea FC and the fans he holds in such high regard and given his inclusion in the club’s official pre-match material this week, we expected Raheem to be involved in some form for this weekend’s game.
“As a camp, we have always had positive conversations with Chelsea FC regarding Raheem’s future at the club and are confident, so we look forward to getting clarity on the situation. Until then, we will continue to support Raheem in his desire to make a positive start to the new season.”
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Sky Sports’ Charlotte Marsh and Paul Gilmour analyse Manchester City’s win over Chelsea after Pep Guardiola’s side suffered a crushing defeat against their former assistant manager.
Expert response: “He’s better than that!”
Jamie Redknapp: “He said he came back two weeks early, which is great. I don’t need to say anything. Do better. He hasn’t been good since he came to Chelsea.
“If the manager doesn’t want you to play, just keep going. Especially don’t call your agent on game day and have them do it. That’s complete bullshit. He should be better than that. His agent should be better than that. That’s a really poor comment. Other players who aren’t on the team could make that comment.
“He wasn’t good enough. That’s your opinion. If you think you did well enough in pre-season, keep doing better. Only the manager’s opinion matters and if he doesn’t pick you, you’re out of luck. You have to come back to training tomorrow morning, be the best trainer you can be and show that you want to play. That’s the only way to get back in the team.”
Micah Richards: “Rahim and his team know exactly what they are doing. They are trying to make noise. There is a lot of noise around the club anyway. It is not enough to just make a statement before a game.
“It won’t help his teammates, and it won’t help him get back on the team.
“He called the manager out and let his teammates down. That’s my problem. He’s better than that.”
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Chelsea vs Manchester City Premier League Match Highlights
Daniel Sturridge: “The timing is not good, especially on the day of the match. He will think he is good enough to help Chelsea. He came back early, had a good pre-season and in his mind he thought he could be involved. They were probably surprised. I don’t agree with the message that was given on the day of the match. Sterling is good enough to be in the Chelsea squad.”
Maresca: I want Sterling, but I can’t have it all.
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Raheem Sterling was left out of the 2-0 defeat to Manchester City entirely, with Enzo Maresca insisting it was a purely tactical decision.
“I want Sterling, but I want them all. You can’t have them all, so some will have to go. We’ll see if we can clarify the situation in the next few days,” Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca said in a post-match press conference.
And tell ~ Sky Sports Before the game, Maresca said: “As a coach you have to make decisions that people and players don’t like. That’s normal. It’s just a technical decision, nothing more. We’ll find out in the next few days.”
