England and Manchester City winger Raheem Sterling has been absolutely tearing it up at Euro 2020, showing the world his elite level talents, skills and abilities. Scoring Three Lions’ first three goals of the tournament, and assisting on another, Sterling has made it clear what any potential new suitor would be getting, should he hit the open market.
And according to The Athletic, it could happen this summer, as he’s reportedly “open to a move,” should he not receive a new contract extension. He has two years left on his current deal, so if he is going to leave the Etihad, MCFC have only this summer or next summer to cash in, and if they wait till next summer, the return will be much lower.
Even if you don't care about football/soccer, Raheem Sterling is very admirable for the way that he has handled all the racism and discrimination he's had to endure, both overt, from football fans, and veiled, from media. #EURO2020 #eng #ThreeLions #ENGDEN #BlackLivesMatter
— Paul M. Banks (@PaulMBanks) July 7, 2021
Sterling scored 10 goals in 31 appearances this past season on the club level, as City won a domestic double. That was his lowest scoring output since the 2016-17 season. While he was selected for the Champions League Final, a loss to Chelsea, he often found himself out of Pep Guardiola’s squad for key matches down the stretch of the season.
His name was also reportedly tossed around as being part of a potential swap deal with Tottenham Hotspur for Harry Kane and the 26-year-old was understood to not be too happy about that. (It’s easy to understand why, given how the offseason has gone at White Hart Lane.
Raheem Sterling has been at City for six years now, having moved over from Liverpool in 2015, for 49 million GBP Sterling, after a lenghty and ugly hold out.
He's come so far since his 2014 @IntChampionsCup Man of the Match performance @SoldierField vs @olympiacosfc
and he couldn't accept the award, because it was sponsored by @GuinnessGB and he was under 21 at the time. #ThreeLions #ENG https://t.co/EQMzuDh4in— Paul M. Banks (@PaulMBanks) June 30, 2021
It appears that both the club and the player have a decision to make over his future, and that doing so is going to require a lot of crunch talks first. Raheem Sterling is reportedly open to a new challenge right now, should the correct one present itself.
The Athletic report goes on to state that Guardiola would like Sterling to stay, for what it is worth, but it may be time for all involved to move on by this point.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank, partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune.
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