Through the middle of last Premier League season, one thing became crystal clear to me: Raheem Sterling is very good. Not only is he incredibly talented, he is incredibly young.
By now I am not breaking any news, Raheem Sterling is one of the most talented players in the English Premier League. But at only 19 years old, does he have the potential to become the best player in England and one of the best players in the world?
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It has been amazing to see his growth over the past couple seasons. He went from a virtually unknown youngster to a World Cup star for England in just a couple of years. If you watched the documentary “Being: Liverpool” which aired before the start of the 2012 EPL season, it appeared that Raheem Sterling may have been on his way out of the club. Brendan Rodgers was not sure if he was ready to put up with this 17 year old kid and there was talk that he would be sent out on loan until he matured a little.
In the end, Rodgers took this risk and I’m sure he is grateful he did.
So far this season there has been little to cheer about in city of Liverpool. Both teams (Liverpool and Everton) have struggled to get going after each had their eye set on contending for a top four position. Liverpool has climbed back into the top half of the table, but it is clear that they are missing the creativity and striking power of Luis Suarez.
Every player on the team has struggled to adapt this season without Suarez, and Raheem Sterling has been no different. He continues to make incredible runs with the ball to find space, but has failed to consistently find a striker who can cash in on Sterling’s magic. However, this is not all Sterling’s fault. Liverpool simply lack a striker with half the talent that Suarez took with him to Barcelona.
Sterling has a unique ability to keep the ball glued to his feet as he runs towards the opposition and then suddenly fly past the defender to create chances for himself or his teammates.
In the last match against West Bromich Albion, Sterling did something that I loved; something that I may have never seen before. As the match was tied and Liverpool looked likely to have another disappointing result, Sterling made one of his brilliant runs into the box before being tackled by a West Brom defender.
But wait, instead of rolling around on the ground begging the referee to blow his whistle, Sterling popped right back up, passed the ball back to a wide open Jordan Henderson who rolled the ball past the keeper into the back of the net.
Maybe Sterling is too young to be so full of cynicism or maybe he simply saw an open teammate and knew that he had the chance to make the go-ahead assist, however, whatever caused him to get back up and finish off the play was a breath of fresh air. In a world were too often a player will elect for falling over instead of taking a shot on goal, Sterling proved that it takes quick instincts to be a great footballer as opposed to Academy Award winning acting skills.
With recent rumors floating around about the possible transfer of Sterling in January to Real Madrid or Chelsea or who knows where else, Liverpool may risk losing a player I believe will become one of the best in the world. At only 19 years old, I would include him on my short list of best EPL players, and as the youngest members of that group. I have no reason to believe Sterling will soon become anything but the best player in the Premier League.