Chelsea’s odious skipper John Terry has weighed in on the Raheem Sterling debate, and unlike many of his fellow professionals, the former England captain thinks the 20-year-old is in the right…
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Sterling, encouraged by his agent Aidy Ward, turned down £100k-per-week from us last term, while the latter declared that his client wouldn’t be renewing his Anfield contract – even for £900k-per-week [via Evening Standard].
This was from a 20-year-old, who failed in the Champions League and endured a very poor second half of the season with Liverpool.
Still, Terry thinks he should be moving on to pastures new to better himself…
“[He] wants to play at the very top for the very best,” the Chelsea captain told talkSPORT.
“Raheem has taken a bit of stick recently, but I was really impressed by him. I didn’t realise how good he was until I played against him three or four times. He’s an exceptional player.
“At times he’s been unfairly treated this year with the press he’s got. He’s a young player and wants to play at the very top for the very best.
“He’s got ambitions to play in the Champions League and continue playing for his country.”
Rightly – if Sterling is demanding an exit – we’re going to demand top dollar for him, and the club’s valuation of £50m could well be met by Manchester City if the Daily Mail are correct.
Again, unlike the rest of the footballing world, Terry thinks Sterling is worth this amount of money.
“The two of them [including Harry Kane] probably deserve the price tags that are floating around at the moment,” Terry continued.
Whether or not Sterling is worth the astronomical fees mooted is irrelevant to us. He has two years left on his contract and we’re in no position where we have to sell.
With the likes of Carlos Bacca, Salomon Rondon and Roberto Firmino all in transfer discussions (via Sky Sports), it appears that we’re already on the lookout for potential replacements.
It’s no surprise that Terry is backing Sterling to be honest. The Chelsea man is clearly just trying to wind up Liverpool fans who’ve already had enough of the winger. If we do get £50m for him, we’ll be laughing all the way to the bank – and Sterling will be getting used to the bench somewhere else.