Summary Raheem Sterling may leave Chelsea despite wanting to stay, due to limited game time and a desire to reclaim his England spot. Chelsea faces financial woes and may need to sell players to balance books and avoid sanctions for exceeding loss limits. Despite a desire to stay, Sterling might need to move on to continue playing regularly at this stage of his career.
A £325,000-per-week star at Chelsea thinks he might now have to leave when the transfer window reopens, despite actually preferring to remain at Stamford Bridge.
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ByEmilio GalantiniMay 14, 2024
Regardless of Pochettino's situation, or who could be Chelsea's manager for 2024/2025, it is widely believed that chairman Todd Boehly quite simply needs to offload players for good by June 30.
Chelsea's latest financial accounts revealed a £90 million loss for 2022/2023, which takes them far above the limit set by the Premier League's Profit and Sustainability rules. Clubs are allowed to make a £105 million loss over a rolling three-year period, a figure which Chelsea are far above as things stand.
The west Londoners risk sanctions akin to those of Everton, Nottingham Forest and Leicester City if they don't balance the books by the end of next month, with widespread reports indicating they could need to raise £100 million through player sales.
The likes of Conor Gallagher, Trevoh Chalobah and Marc Cucurella could be sold by Chelsea, alongside the host of players they currently have out on loan. Boehly will be eager to offload his highest earners in that regard, with Romelu Lukaku attracting interest from Al-Ittihad in Saudi Arabia.
Another big-name player who could be let go is winger Raheem Sterling. The Englishman, who's scored seven goals and assisted four others in the league this season, has started just 21 games – with some reports suggesting Chelsea could use Sterling in swap deals for key transfer targets like Michael Olise.
Chelsea 3-0 Luton Town
8.80
Burnley 1-4 Chelsea
8.33
Chelsea 4-4 Man City
7.76
Tottenham 1-4 Chelsea
7.60
West Ham 3-1 Chelsea
7.56
A serial winner at Man City, the £325,000-per-week Sterling is now 29 years old and slowly approaching the twilight phase of his career, so now could be the time to make hay while the sun is still shining.
Raheem Sterling thinks he might have to leave Chelsea
According to journalist Simon Phillips, writing via his Substack, Sterling thinks he might have to leave Chelsea despite wanting to remain – mainly due to a fear around game time and wanting to regain his England place.
“At the moment, I am told that it is his desire to stay at Chelsea, that is what is coming from his side," wrote Phillips.
“But I’ve also heard from another source that Sterling is starting to accept that he might need to leave Chelsea if he wants to play regular football moving forward, and at this stage of his career, he wants to play because he still has a desire to get back into the England squad and has not given up on that yet.
“The source has said Sterling wants to see how it goes and is open to hearing any offers that come in for him this summer.”
