Raheem Sterling has seemingly made his position at Liverpool untenable, after the BBC reported that he plans to tell Brendan Rodgers in a meeting on Friday that he wishes to leave Anfield and therefore, will not be extending his stay at the club.
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If the situation is as it seems, it is difficult to imagine that Rodgers will want to keep him at the club, even though he still has two years left on his current deal.
The exciting thing for us fans is the prospect of the signing that we will look to bring in to ease Sterling’s increasingly inevitable departure… Here are six potential players that could replace him:
Roberto Firmino (Hoffenheim)
The 23-year-old is not the finished article, but the potential is frightening. That sentence will probably worry some of our fans, based on what we have been told about certain signings in the past, but this player seems to be the real deal. His game is about much more than goals, which allows him to play as a striker or a winger. He only has six strikes this season, but has contributed another nine assists. At times, we have watched Sterling squander excellent chances this season, but Firmino’s finishing is one of his biggest strengths, so it is unlikely that he would pass up some of those same chances if given the opportunity.
Like Philippe Coutinho, he is also rising to prominence in the Brazilian national side, having made his debut in November last year. By playing together at club and country level, we could see a blossoming relationship on the pitch that takes us back towards the Premier League’s summit.
With his club not competing above mid-table in the Bundesliga, it would not be unreasonable to think that we may be able to persuade him to Merseyside. However, we would need to see a goal return that reflects the undeniable quality he has.
Jeremy Menez (AC Milan)
Menez has been one of the most prolific attackers in Serie A this season, but like Firmino, his side will miss out on European football next season, perhaps tempting him to consider his options. He has plenty of experience under his belt, but still has years at the top of his game ahead. The 28-year-old looks threatening whenever he is given the ball, and can run at defenders with a lot of pace, which makes him similar to Sterling in that sense. However, his finishing has been clinical this year, and the French international has already bagged 16 goals in the league.
He has had trouble with discipline in the past, which makes him the kind of player that Brendan Rodgers should stay clear off. Nevertheless, his ruthless ability in front of goal may make him worth the gamble.
Javier Pastore (Paris Saint-Germain)
With the Ligue 1 title in the bag this season, and Champions League football beckoning again next year, it seems very difficult to see the 25-year-old deciding to move to Merseyside. Selfishly, the only thing we can hope for is that the number of superstars currently in the Paris Saint-Germain side forces Laurent Blanc to make some questionable decisions like leaving Pastore out, and thus forcing him to consider his future. Unlike the previous two players, he is much more commonly seen behind the striker, and his goal tally reflects that. In a championship winning side, you would perhaps expect better than five goals in 33 appearances. However, he has created 12 goals for his teammates, that’s five more than Raheem Sterling.
Unsurprisingly given his assist record, his passing is his greatest strength and so for that reason, he would probably look more like a Steven Gerrard replacement.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Borussia Dortmund)
With Robert Lewandowski’s move to Bayern Munich, the 25-year-old has really been able to step out of the shadow this season. And while Borussia Dortmund spent much of the campaign struggling, and even looked like possible relegation candidates, their season could now end with a spot in the Europa League. Aubameyang has 15 goals having spent the year as a striker, but he can also play out on the wing. He offers much more of an aerial threat than Sterling, which would come in just as handy when it came to defending set-pieces, as it would attacking them.
He offers an immense amount of pace that would certainly help the transition after we initially sold Sterling, before he can fully make his mark on the side.
Jese (Real Madrid)
Just when Jese looked like he was ready to become a world-beater, he suffered a cruciate ligament injury that kept him sidelined for over eight months last year. That is obviously the main concern, especially given the troubles we have had with Daniel Sturridge this season. But if he can stay fit, there is no denying that he could become one of the best players in the Premier League. He is suffering at the Bernabeu as opportunities are scarce with Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo just two of the quality names ahead of him. He is obviously not at their level yet, but it is unlikely that even when he is, he will get a fair chance, as Madrid will prefer to see their big-money signings flourish. Their loss should be our gain.
He has experience playing the false nine role in the side, which could benefit some of the attacking players in the side, as he can create gaps in opposition defence for the likes of Coutinho and Adam Lallana to exploit.
Kevin De Bruyne (Wolfsburg)
The 23-year-old is one of the examples of Chelsea’s transfer policy coming back to haunt them. Over the years, they have bought several talented youngsters, who they deem – normally correctly – not good enough for the Blues side, then send out on loan and watch their value rocket, before selling them on for major profit. While he’s an ambitious target, De Bruyne is the kind of player that we should target at the start of the summer. It may just pay off.
De Bruyne has been incredible for Wolfsburg this year. His goal tally of 10 strikes for a winger would be impressive enough, but when you factor in that he got 20 – yes 20 – assists, it should mean that as unrealistic as signing him would be, we have to make sure that we try. After the way he was treated at Stamford Bridge, there is probably nothing he would love more than to come back and haunt those who wrote him off at the club.
With the Sterling windfall, we’d be able to afford him, too.