English winger Raheem Sterling, who was unwanted at Chelsea this summer, has been loaned to Arsenal for a season, the two clubs announced on Friday night, after the summer transfer window closed. “You’re going to see the best of me,” promised the 29-year-old striker in a video posted online by Arsenal. At the Gunners, he is preparing to reunite with coach Mikel Arteta, who was Pep Guardiola’s assistant when Sterling played at Manchester City. Sportingly, he is above all finding a last-minute exit after being sidelined by Chelsea’s new coach, Enzo Maresca, at the start of the 2024-2025 season.
Sterling’s non-call-up for the resumption of the championship on August 18 against City (2-0 defeat) had caused a lot of ink to flow. His advisors had even expressed their concern about this situation via a press release widely relayed by the British press. Since then, the winger born in Kingston, Jamaica, has been kept away from the team and seen the Blues continue to recruit other players playing in his position. Chelsea notably attracted this summer the Portuguese Pedro Neto and Joao Felix, wing attackers like Noni Madueke and Mykhaïlo Mudryk, to name but a few.
More depth for Arteta
Sterling was a key starter last season under Mauricio Pochettino and took part in the pre-season tour this summer with the Argentinian’s successor, the Italian Maresca. At Arsenal, a starting spot seems difficult to come by since the wings are occupied on the left by Gabriel Martinelli and on the right by Bukayo Saka, in a virtually unchangeable manner.
But the England international (82 caps, 20 goals), who has not been called up to the “Three Lions” since the 2022 World Cup, could benefit from the necessary rotation in the squad of the English vice-champions, qualified for the Champions League for the second consecutive year. The summer transfer window was scheduled to close at 11 p.m. but an additional two-hour period was granted to clubs that had reached an agreement without having had time to finalize the final details.
