Featured in the forthcoming Channel Five fly on the wall documentary about Liverpool FC is a severe dressing down for teenage winger Raheem Sterling from manager Brendan Rodgers.
Fantasy managers would have been forgiven for thinking that Sterling’s first team chances would be limited after he dared to muttered ‘steady’ under his breath during one of Rodgers’ team talks. Turns out the incident was something of a red herring – Rodgers not only appears to have forgiven the 17-year-old, but rates him so highly that Sterling has managed 90 minutes in each of Liverpool’s last three matches.
After a disappointing end to the summer transfer window, which saw the Reds fail to land chief target Clint Dempsey and wave goodbye to Andy Carroll on loan, Sterling appears to have very little competition on the flanks. Fellow winger Stewart Downing is falling so far out of favour Rodgers wants to convert him to left back and new recruit Oussama Assaidi still needs time to adjust to the English game.
Rodgers appears so convinced of Sterling’s ability that he is also prepared to play him on either wing, as one of the key players to feed central striker Luis Suarez. While against Manchester City and Arsenal he was deployed mainly on the left wing, a switch to the right against Sunderland in Gameweek 4 increased his potential further, with Sterling producing an assist for the Uruguayan during the 1-1 draw.
England manager Roy Hodgson is also impressed. After the former Queen’s Park Rangers academy player’s recent run in Liverpool’s first team, he was swiftly promoted from the England Under19s to the full England squad earlier this month.
Priced initially at 4.5m in the FPL game and 4.3m in the Sky Sports game, he is arguably the pick of the cheap midfielders on offer. Sterling’s cost, however, is set to rise as he continues to cement a wide role, with expectations high on the back of his Black Cats’ performance. Already 17,598 managers have transferred him in this Gameweek in the FPL game, which has seen his price rise to 4.6m.
His emergence as a Fantasy prospect also coincides with a turn in fixtures for Liverpool over the next six game weeks. While this weekend’s home showdown with United may deter many, history shows that it may turn out to be profitable for the Merseysiders. Sir Alex Ferguson’s side have not won at Anfield in the league for the last four seasons, with Liverpool registering eight goals to Manchester United’s three in the fixture since 2008/9. With (nor, STO, REA, eve, NEW) to follow, Sterling could well be set for a prosperous next few weeks as he looks to justify his manager’s show of faith.
