While he may not get the recognition that he necessarily deserves, Raheem Sterling is a four-time Premier League winner and has six domestic cups to his name. Before the age of 30, the winger is one of a select group of players who have more than 200 goal contributions in the Premier League (121 goals, 86 assists) and he is an 82-cap veteran for England. Whether he will ever reach 83 remains to be seen.
In the aftermath of a mixed afternoon for Sterling as Chelsea came through one of several FA Cup thrillers over the course of the weekend, Mauricio Pochettino launched a staunch defence of a player who had missed a penalty, squandered a one-on-one and sent a free kick into orbit that may or may not have made contact with Robert Huth's infamous effort from 2016 on the way down. According to Pochettino, Sterling 'needs the support' of the Chelsea fans, describing his untimely efforts as "a little bit unlucky".
As Pochettino launched his own defence of decisions that he made during the match, including preferring to substitute the lively Mykhaylo Mudryk over an evidently-struggling Sterling in a move that only poured fuel onto the feelings of hostility inside Stamford Bridge, his comments regarding Sterling became somewhat of a side-show. Perhaps that was a calculated move on Pochettino's part.
But at some point, Pochettino needs to accept that a difficult conversation needs to be had, regardless of how the mass younger crop value Sterling as a mentor and leader in the dressing room. Noni Madueke showed that support on the back of a negative response to Sterling's social media post on Sunday night.
Sterling took it upon himself to apologise for missing a penalty that would have put Chelsea 2-0 ahead in the contest with Leicester City. While not in the exact words, it was your standard 'sorry I didn't make the right decision, we go again' rhetoric that is supposed to satisfy an audience. People should have stopped investing in that after the Victor Anichebe incident.
That is not to say that Sterling is not genuine in his desire to do better. This is a player who took a risk in moving to Chelsea. This is a man whose legacy in the English game will mean something to him, someone who knows that he is reaching the stage of his career where he is fighting for longevity and to stop modern-day football passing him by.
Yet his apology left a sour taste. Sterling was saying sorry for the wrong thing, and that remains long overdue.
Not for the first time this season, he showed the kind of immaturity that should not be associated with a player of his standing. Cole Palmer - who boasts a 100% record from the penalty spot this season - was preparing to take responsibility, only to have Sterling in his ear that he wanted to take it.
It should be noted that several people should take blame here. Palmer should have literally been 'cold' to Sterling's advances. Conor Gallagher should have been strong enough as a captain, as Enzo Fernandez was as a leadership figure against Arsenal earlier in the season, to shut down Sterling's request.
More so, should Pochettino not be doing more to ensure that Palmer keeps the ball in his hand? When Chelsea supporters are voicing their displeasure at a decision that he makes, the Argentine is ready to argue the point. When it comes to handing out penalty duties, he is flaky and says that it is down to the players. Take responsibility.
But I digress. This was the latest in a growing line of instances of poor decision-making from Sterling. The impression is sometimes given that he wants to mount a one-man crusade to show that he is not washed-up after his Etihad glory days. That he refuses to be upstaged by the young bucks that he is supposed to be leading by example.
His numbers for the season suggest that he can remain as a valuable member of this squad. Eight goals and 10 assists from 36 appearances, completing the 90 minutes of just 14 occasions, is the contribution of someone who is relishing the challenge of reinventing himself at another giant of the English game after his experiences of Liverpool and Manchester City.
Yet it can also have a detrimental effect on everyone else. The one-on-one scenario that presented itself at 0-0 against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Christmas Eve stands out, when Sterling failed to tee up either of Palmer or Nicolas Jackson and was instead denied by Jose Sa. Chelsea lost 2-1 and the pressure mounted on Pochettino.
Nearly an identical situation arose against Newcastle United last week. Not once did Sterling look up and see Palmer - who was demanding the ball to slot into an empty net - when he advanced through on goal with Chelsea 2-1 up, and instead ran down a blind alley and was nullified by the combination of Martin Dubravka and a clearance off the line.
It was not bad luck that Dan Burn and a teammate were able to get back and it was not an anomaly. These are trends being set by Sterling and Pochettino not being strong enough to eradicate them from his game.
Perhaps Pochettino recognises the value of Sterling's experience. Assuming that Thiago Silva leaves in the summer, Sterling becomes the elder statesman in the dressing room at 29, barring Marcus Bettinelli, and let's be honest, Chelsea will not be recruiting anyone north of 30 this summer. But that gives neither of them a free pass.
With Chelsea not returning to action until March 30 when they play host to Burnley, Pochettino and Sterling have time to diffuse the toxicity that will accompany his selection in any given match, yet it remains up for debate whether Pochettino is prepared to have the kind of impactful conversation that is required to put Sterling on a different course. He has already proven that he will not reach that point on his own. body check tags ::
