Sterling

[zacc]

My view is prefer he doesn't come to City as seems to be happy for his agent to stir things up,which smacks of Tevez behaviour.
Plus he likes giving interviews off the cuff.

[reddishblue]

I remember seeing him at 17 and thinking this guy has talent. Not really improved  since. A no from me.

[goat]

runs like a ladyboy and his head is a few sizes too big for his body

him being english makes it a no even tho the dippers would manage to use the cash to weaken themselves again

[goat]

saw somewhere they dippers want dzeko and jovetic, would be a funny deal to do for him

[Rowley Birkin QC]

Certainly behaving like a right arse at the bin dippers as he and his agent try to engineer a move.

But... if you asked me to choose between Bale and Sterling, I think I might just prefer Sterling...

[gavin]

We don't seem to have much luck with wingers these days. We've finally got rid of Sinclair. Navas has only looked good in flashes, a hard worker but his end product and especially his finishing leaves quite a bit to be desired. Johnson also looked good on occasion but decided he was better off nearer home doing other things...

I would prefer David White or SWP from the last season of his first spell at City. Sterling would be worth a go at the right price but I doubt very much he will be at the right price.

I don't really agree that he is doing anything wrong at Liverpool. He doesn't have to sign a contract if he doesn't want to much as Milner doesn't have to at City. I can't really see Liverpool winning much in the near future either. So why should he stay there to earn less whilst winning nothing? Of course there is no loyalty in football and it has helped Liverpool sign a fair few players over the years especially when they were rich and successful. If they are now losing players to City then it is fucking great in my opinion.

[bluebrendan]

Certainly behaving like a right arse at the bin dippers as he and his agent try to engineer a move.

But... if you asked me to choose between Bale and Sterling, I think I might just prefer Sterling...

Me too, a player plus cash deal involving Jovetic and no more than about £18m cash wouldn't be a bad move. I think part of his problem this season is that he's been about their only consistently fit forward and Rodgers has over-used him. He'd certainly be an upgrade on Navas/Milner on the right side of a 4-2-3-1 and playing alongside Silva and Aguero should help him develop.

Also Rodgers hasn't handled things well at all, blabbing off in the media about offering him "an incredible deal", not a good idea to negotiate these things in public.

[bluebrendan]

Of course there is no loyalty in football and it has helped Liverpool sign a fair few players over the years especially when they were rich and successful. If they are now losing players to City then it is fucking great in my opinion.

Including getting Sterling from QPR, they can hardly complain if they now get bitten on the arse.

[nimrod]

Certainly behaving like a right arse at the bin dippers as he and his agent try to engineer a move.

But... if you asked me to choose between Bale and Sterling, I think I might just prefer Sterling...

Me too, a player plus cash deal involving Jovetic and no more than about £18m cash wouldn't be a bad move. I think part of his problem this season is that he's been about their only consistently fit forward and Rodgers has over-used him. He'd certainly be an upgrade on Navas/Milner on the right side of a 4-2-3-1 and playing alongside Silva and Aguero should help him develop.

Also Rodgers hasn't handled things well at all, blabbing off in the media about offering him "an incredible deal", not a good idea to negotiate these things in public.

Not keen on Sterling myself, he seems to be one of these high maintainance characters, suffers from tiredness (England) and he seems to hold himself in high esteem, he's a bit too 'public' for me, his head is way too big (in more ways than one) 

I just worry if he comes to us if he will do what SWP did when he went to Chavski, ie nothing much...........Bale has a point to prove in the prem, and I dont want Manure getting him.

[Rowley Birkin QC]

There's something about Bale that makes me a little uneasy. An undoubted talent - fast - scores goals... but I've watched a lot of Real Madrid this season and I can see why they've got frustrated with him. It might be acute homesickness, or maybe the system Real play doesn't quite suit him but to my eyes he often doesn't seem to be on quite the same page as his team-mates and his decision making at critical moments is frequently poor.

Maybe a trip back to the Prem will sort Bale out, but part of me thinks Sterling would be a better fit for our squad.

[Stephen Paul]

A no from me , don't really rate him much and can't see him improving our squad

[nimrod]

A no from me , don't really rate him much and can't see him improving our squad

what about the pig?

[Ludo]

Depending on the price I think he ticks all the boxes.

He young, home grown, paced and can score goals. He's certainly a better prospect than Navas.

[Leewonpen]

Depending on the price I think he ticks all the boxes.

He young, home grown, paced and can score goals. He's certainly a better prospect than Navas.

If you believe the papers (Express, Mirror) £40m and £200k a week.....a no from me at that price

[bluepill]

If we buy over priced English players we will end up having an over priced team that is as good as england

[Ludo]

Depending on the price I think he ticks all the boxes.

He young, home grown, paced and can score goals. He's certainly a better prospect than Navas.

If you believe the papers (Express, Mirror) £40m and £200k a week.....a no from me at that price

No, not at that price but it's the Express after all.

Maybe a player plus cash deal but I doubt we'd be offering that sort of wage.

[Stephen Paul]

A no from me , don't really rate him much and can't see him improving our squad

what about the pig?

Pig says Fook him

[KunDB]

If we are not as constrained by Financial Foul Play then who cares about price or wages, the club can sort that.

A yes from me, young, English, home grown will bring some pace and passion into our game. .

[Leewonpen]

If we are not as constrained by Financial Foul Play then who cares about price or wages, the club can sort that.

A yes from me, young, English, home grown will bring some pace and passion into our game. .

Pay Sterling £200k a week - what do the existing first team take from that?.....if he's worth £200k, Aguero......? Can you imagine the hissy fit from Yaya's agent, all the other players we may be interested in, their demands go up.
You and I are not paying for that directly so in that respect why should we care? But the owner is surely a shrewd cookie and will want to recoup his money. Also from a personal perspective I'm a firm (idealistic maybe) believer that money in football has gone way over the top. FFP may not be the answer but a solution is needed.

....oh, and I'm not even sure he's that good.

[goat]

not sure english is a plus point either, look at the last load of english players weve had

[Rowley Birkin QC]

If some of you don't like the sound of the wages Sterling might be on (and their knock on effects) then I can't help wondering what wages Bale would be on (should we get him). Surely at least as high?

So... maybe we should pull our heads in - forget about Sterling and Bale, and buy more 'sensibly' / cannily?

[nimrod]

If some of you don't like the sound of the wages Sterling might be on (and their knock on effects) then I can't help wondering what wages Bale would be on (should we get him). Surely at least as high?

So... maybe we should pull our heads in - forget about Sterling and Bale, and buy more 'sensibly' / cannily?

Trouble is every time we buy a mid price player we end up with somebody not good enough/average

All our recent purchases have been of this ilk

A couple of marque signings is what we need Bale & Pogba maybe

As regards wages, yes Bale would be on huge wages but I put him miles ahead of Sterling in terms of talent, in fact I put him in the worlds top 10

Just my opinion of course

[Rowley Birkin QC]

With regard to the wages question I was just playing devils advocate, but I think the point stands - that if we want City to go after big name players this summer the club's wage structure is going to come under renewed (and disruptive) pressure. Doesn't matter if it's Sterling, Bale or anyone else.

Part of me agrees with Leeonepen when he says the amounts of money involved in modern, top flight football have reach ridiculous and unrealistic levels. FFP as it stands certainly isn't the answer, but sooner or later something is going to have to change for the general health of the game.

[KunDB]

I have faith in our club owners and executive management, enough to let them worry about the finances and wages.

As fans we are best to worry about the players and transfer targets, though hard not to be startled by some of the financial headline figures for players. Bear in mind that it is all piddling amounts compared to what our Rory earns hitting a golf ball around the world.

Bale is very good, not perfect a bit on the lazy in out Yaya style at times but would be a big step up on what we currently have. So forgetting money definite yes.

Raheem as stated ticks many boxes we need ticked; mostly young (reduce squad/first team age); talented; full of promise/potential; English; home grown; tempo; some trickery; passion. Again not perfect by any assessment and again forgetting the money side a definite second yes.

[The Blue Blooded Maniac]

Bale achieved more in his first season at Real than Raheem can dream for his career

[Rowley Birkin QC]

Bale achieved more in his first season at Real than Raheem can dream for his career

I should hope he did, considering the team / players he had around him!

[The Blue Blooded Maniac]

He carried spurs for a good while to earn the chance to be among such players.

[Swiss]

bale every time over Sterling

[gavin]

Bale is undoubtedly the more proven player. He was absolutely excellent in his last season at Spuds. Sterling should be cheaper even if hardly  cheap. Either would strengthen our squad at the moment. Neither would be my top priority. Sorting the defence would be and I honestly believe in attacking football too.

[Swiss]

I think sorting the centre mid is the top priority rather than defence.

[nimrod]

I think sorting the centre mid is the top priority rather than defence.

Neither would be my top priority. Sorting the defence would be and I honestly believe in attacking football too.

Milner can play in both positions in the same game, (English too) maybe offer him 2 wages to stay 

[zacc]

I think sorting the centre mid is the top priority rather than defence.

agree especially if Yaya is off this summer

[nimrod]

I think sorting the centre mid is the top priority rather than defence.

agree especially if Yaya is off this summer

been off for a while zacc

[zacc]

I think sorting the centre mid is the top priority rather than defence.

agree especially if Yaya is off this summer

been off for a while zacc

well will be literally in the summer

[clevblue]

Iheanacho should be another sterling really. It's midfield strength we need, ESpecially if Yaya goes

[Neil Mcnab]

Sterling is undoubtedly a very good player. If he kicks off to leave the filthy koppites via his arsehole of an agent, he obviously would do the same anytime he wants at his next club. Be it cakes, disrespect, playing time and the like.
While I think as a player he is a decent, the negatives outweigh this - no thanks.

Bale is on a different level, would be a great asset, no negatives around spiting the dummy either.

[Stephen Paul]

The English connection is nothing now a days .we can buy better from abroad .

[Swiss]

home grown is an issue though: we need 8 and scudamore wants to increase it to 12...

I wouldn't rate Sterling as "very good", at least not yet. Potential yes, but he needs a few seasons under his belt first

[zacc]

so called home grown applies to a player having been within youth for 3 years,
point made in bold not necessarily UK nationally

quote "A change in the definition of home grown player to any player, irrespective of their nationality, who has been registered with any club affiliated to The FA or Football Association of Wales (FAW) for a period of three years prior to the player’s 18th birthday (currently the definition states a home grown player has to be registered with The FA or FAW for three years before their 21st birthday)."

Read more at http://www.thefa.com/news/thefa/2015/mar/greg-dyke-england-commission-homegrown-players-work-permits-march-2015#gRZ6jiEHG5jQV0mp.99

[Swiss]

yep, we've got one in our squad... Clichy!

[bannblue]

A big NO from me.

[Swiss]

no

Is that better?

[nimrod]

no

Is that better?

I'll remind you of that when he bangs in 28 goals next season 

swap him for Dzeko

[Swiss]

was in reference to bannblue's "big no" comment!

But i doubt he'll be banging in that many considering he got 8 this year!

[nimrod]

was in reference to bannblue's "big no" comment!

But i doubt he'll be banging in that many considering he got 8 this year!

aye but thats with Henderson & Co

[Swiss]

This season: Liverpool created 423 chances. Last season 488

In contrast:
City: This 522: Last 533
Chelsea: 444: 506
Arsenal: 452: 404

[KunDB]

The stats I have seen show Sterling is light years ahead of anyone at his age. The thing is it does not overly matter how good his stats are at the moment it is how good will they develop and be in the next few years. If we have to buy HG we could do a lot worse than Sterling, and have bought a lot worse in recent history.

Typical paper wars Sterling started being reported as a £35m target for City and now it has steadily crept up to £60m (Daily Fail), as they compete against each other to sell copy.

Stats Comparison to Walcott

[Rowley Birkin QC]

Chelsea clearly more efficient in front of goal then.

At least we look consistent! A difference of only 11 chances created across a full season is no difference at all.

[Swiss]

Still one more game to play so I assume we'll create approx 11 chances... hopefully...

The stats I have seen show Sterling is light years ahead of anyone at his age. The thing is it does not overly matter how good his stats are at the moment it is how good will they develop and be in the next few years. If we have to buy HG we could do a lot worse than Sterling, and have bought a lot worse in recent history.

Typical paper wars Sterling started being reported as a £35m target for City and now it has steadily crept up to £60m (Daily Fail), as they compete against each other to sell copy.

Stats Comparison to Walcott

He's undoubtedly got potential, but you don't spank £30m to £40m on potential, especially not one that's courting negative press like he does. All I'm seeing is another Yaya with his shit house agent stirring crap when he should be getting his head down and playing games.

I just don't think he's got that professional attitude and the extra bit of skill to take him to the next level that would court such a high fee.

[zacc]

Sterling needs his temperament to develop as well as his playing skills.
Appreciate he's still a young man but if he coud  take a leaf from Super Frankie Lampard book & get his head down work hard, become an ambassador for the game on & off the field, he might start to be worth the price tags papers are bandying about.

[Ludo]

It's strange that we're using Sterling's comments, along with those of his agent, against him yet when Fernandinho was doing a similar thing with Shaktar we didn't mind.

[lee]

can we have levazzi for a couple of years instead or robben

[goat]

not sure he would even be in my top 10 targets

[Swiss]

It's strange that we're using Sterling's comments, along with those of his agent, against him yet when Fernandinho was doing a similar thing with Shaktar we didn't mind.

I missed those, what did he say?

[Ludo]

Wasn't he on twatter at the time saying how much he wanted to leave and that Shaktar were asking too much money etc etc....

[KunDB]

WORTH A READ

Story Link

Fingers on buzzers for a quickfire numbers round: £35,000 a week; £100,000 a week; “He is not signing for £700,000, £800,000, £900,000 a week.” Name the footballer. You knew instantly that it was Raheem Sterling â€" and the figures were, in turn, his current salary, Liverpool’s new contract offer, and the dismissive response of his agent, Aidy Ward. Meanwhile Sterling’s potential transfer fee increasingly seems subject to Weimar Republic levels of hyperinflation â€" from £40m earlier in the week to £60m in one Sunday paper.

Meanwhile the country appears split down the middle. On the one hand we have Sterling the wunderkind, who made his England debut at 17 and won Europe’s Golden Boy 2014. On the other, there are the doomsayers who warn that he might be another Aaron Lennon, his football talents prematurely frozen in carbonite. As one poster on a Liverpool forum put it recently: “His shooting has been poor, his crossing poor, and the only thing he was good at was taking selfies on his mid-season holiday.”

Then there are the professional fenceâ€'sitters, who fatuously state that Sterling is a work in progress. Of course he is â€" he’s 20. Even Cristiano Ronaldo and Leo Messi were at that age. A far more interesting exercise is to try to figure out how Sterling compares with other top attacking midfielders/wing forwards when they were 20 â€" and that requires a broader range of figures than ones with pound signs and rows of zeros after them.

So far in his Premier League career Sterling has scored 18 goals in 95 games (a rate of 0.23 goals per 90 minutes) and 14 assists (0.18 per 90 minutes). This season â€" during which he has turned 20 â€" he has seven goals, seven assists and has created 75 chances in 35 games. Those numbers are pretty good. Especially given Liverpool have lost Luis Suárez, been largely without Daniel Sturridge, and have seen Steven Gerrard coming out much the worse from a crunching challenge with Father Time.

In particular those 75 chances created stand out. The season Ronaldo turned 20, he created 49 chances in 33 games for Manchester United, and Messi managed 40 from 28 matches. David Silva registered 40 from 34 matches, Gareth Bale 39 from 23 matches and Theo Walcott 22 from 25 matches. Sterling trumps them all.


Advertisement



Indeed, only Eden Hazard and Mesut Özil posted better chance creation numbers at the same age. And remember, Sterling did this in a Liverpool side that struggled to get past 50 Premier League goals. Last season they scored 101.

Admittedly, Sterling isn’t quite at the very top table when you rank players based on their goals and assists by the age of 20. Lionel Messi stands alone (he was scoring nearly three goals every four games even then) with Hazard and Arjen Robben the next best, albeit in the weaker Ligue 1 and Eredivisie. But Sterling’s numbers either match up, or are better than, everyone else in his position.

The comparisons with Sterling and Ronaldo at 20 are also worth exploring. At that age Ronaldo was not the goalscoring terminator he is now. According to Opta, he had played 64 Premier League games, scoring nine goals (0.2 per 90 minutes) and creating eight assists (0.18 per 90 minutes). Of course these numbers don’t tell you everything. Ronaldo was already an immense talent. He had starred in an FA Cup final and had a decent Euro 2004. But at 20 his raw numbers weren’t any better than Sterling’s. He certainly wasn’t a world beater.

There are other caveats, too. Young players mature at different rates, and past performance is not always a guarantee of future success. But as Omar Chaudhuri, the head of football intelligence at 21st Club points out, Sterling’s numbers have not been inflated by unsustainable hot streaks, which therefore makes what we have seen so far a decent indicator of what will happen from now on.

Chaudhuri, who works with several top European clubs, also makes another point. When it comes to highly rated young players, the transfer market has often got it right. He points to the list of the 25 most expensive under-23 signings in history. The top five? Neymar, James Rodríguez, Gianluigi Buffon, Rio Ferdinand and Sergio Agüero. Wayne Rooney, Fernando Torres (from Atlético Madrid to Liverpool), Hazard, Robben and Ronaldinho are also on the list.

There are duds in there too â€" Andy Carroll for one. But there are far fewer mistakes than in the list of big-money transfers from 23-30, which includes Kaká’s transfer to Real Madrid. Torres’s move to Chelsea, Gaizka Mendieta’s move to Lazio and many other flops.

As Chaudhuri puts it: “It’s also interesting that a lot of prodigies in Sterling’s position â€" Ronaldo, Hazard, Mata, Bale, Özil â€" were at least 21 before they made their first big-money move, which tells us a couple of things. First, that clubs are already willing to spend big on Sterling â€" and probably have been for a year, so since he’s been 19 â€" reflects his ability and potential. And second that his value is likely to be nowhere near its peak.”

Does this mean Sterling will develop into one of the best players in the world? We can’t be certain. But we can say this. There is an enormous amount to like about his football already and the odds are that he will get much better.

[reddishblue]

"Does this mean Sterling will develop into one of the best players in the world? "

Not a chance.

[andy1966]

No he's a diver , not the type of player id like to see at City

[clevblue]

Like his EDS teammates, Iheanacho was overlooked for City's 2-0 win over Southampton, however Head of Player Recruitment Gary Worthington insisted the teenager had a bright future with The Blues.

“Kelechi is back scoring goals after his injury. After what he showed in recent games like that against Manchester United, he is very much part of the first-team plans for next season,” Worthington told African Football.

[bry the guy]

I dont remember seeing his name on the team list of the players that have gone but jimmy has flown with them.

[bry the guy]

I didnt...
Goalkeepers: Joe Hart, Willy Caballero, Richard Wright

Defenders: Barcary Sagna, Vincent Kompany, Pablo Zabaleta, Aleksander Kolarov, Gael Clichy, Martin Demichelis, Dedryck Boyata, Pablo Maffeo

Midfielders: James Milner, Samir Nasri, Jesus Navas, David Silva, Yaya Toure, Olivier Ntcham, Bersant Celina, Seko Fofana, George Evans, Manu Garcia

Forwards: Sergio Agüero, Edin Dzeko, Wilfried Bony, Brandon Barker, Jose Pozo

[Swiss]

I've got  feeling he's on international duty at the U20 world cup in New Zealand.

[Swiss]

Looks like England didn't qualify...

Nigeria's group looks interesting...

Nigeria
Brazil
North Korea
Hungary

All teams to qualify:

Confederation   
AFC (Asia)   
Myanmar
North Korea
Qatar
Uzbekistan

CAF (Africa)
Ghana
Mali
Nigeria
Senegal

CONCACAF (North, Central America & Caribbean)
Honduras
Mexico
Panama
United States

CONMEBOL (South America)   
Argentina
Brazil
Colombia
Uruguay

OFC (Oceania)   
Fiji

UEFA (Europe)   
Austria
Germany
Hungary
Portugal
Serbia
Ukraine

Host nation
New Zealand

[goat]

why bother dragging boyata there?
be less weird if they took a rotting corpse

[zacc]

so far the nos have it

[Stephen Paul]

Real Madrid after Sterling apparently , strange

[bluebrendan]

Real Madrid after Sterling apparently , strange

It was Benitez who signed him for Liverpool as a 15 year old.

[The Blue Blooded Maniac]