TATT’S NOT GOOD ENOUGH
Gareth rap for Sterling’s late show
GARETH SOUTHGATE backed Raheem Sterling over his gun tattoo yesterday – but admits that he hammered him for turning up late.
The England boss revealed he gave the Manchester City star a dressingdown during a heart-to-heart at St George’s Park.
Sterling has been heavily criticised this week for his new tattoo of an automatic assault rifle on his right leg.
But Southgate said the only apology he has had to make is to his team-mates for arriving a day late at their pre-World Cup camp.
“He was given off until the Tuesday night and he arrived on the Wednesday morning,” said Southgate.
“So, he was late. That was dealt with. And we discussed it as a group and moved on.
“There was a mix-up on flights and a connection.
“I had a discussion with the player, we come to an agreement. And then he, in fairness to him, wanted to apologise to the group, explained his commitment to the team, and it’s done.
“The reason I dealt with it was because we’d agreed he could have some extra time, and he was late after the
extra time.”The latest revelation comes in the wake of Sterling’s controversial tattoo, which he claimed was in honour of his father who was gunned down and killed when he was two.
The 23-year-old’s dodgy timekeeping came to light after he went to Jamaica for a family holiday, having earlier enjoyed a break in Ibiza.
But he messed up his journey home, catching a flight that required a connection in Miami instead of a direct route.
It is understood Southgate warned Sterling it can never happen again.
“Managers want an easy life, really,” he said, ahead of today’s World Cup warm-up against Nigeria at Wembley. “They don’t want to have conversations and we know the world we live in. Nothing stays private. So if those situations happen, they are going to be out there.
“That’s part of the long discussion we had when we went for a walk.”
Southgate, who is set to start Sterling in the friendly with Nigeria today, revealed he has no issues with the forward’s tattoo.
“He understands how some people have perceived the tattoo,” added the Three Lions manager.
“But in my view, a tattoo is like any work of art – it has individual meaning.
“What has been clear is that he is not someone who wants to promote guns.”