It’s going to be a closer shave than the blades he advertises for Sterling to get the Qatar call
THE pound in your pocket isn’t the only Sterling devalued since talentless clots in Downing Street tried to crash the economy.
On the foreign exchange markets, you can only get US$1.13, €1.10 and about 0.5 avocados to the pound these days.
And on the final countdown to England’s World Cup crusade in Qatar, Raheem Sterling should no longer be a sure thing in Gareth Southgate’s starting XI against Iran next month.
Sterling is not playing badly. At £47.5million, his transfer from Manchester City has looked better value than some of the overpriced tat elsewhere in the Premier League.
But since he was England’s
player of the tournament at the Euros last year, he has not been calling the tune like a jukebox.
And with Phil Foden, Bukayo Saka, Mason Mount, Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Jack Grealish all jostling for places behind lone striker Harry Kane, it’s going to be a closer shave than the blades he advertises every night on the box for Sterling to keep the shirt.
Look at this season’s stats and judge for yourself: Foden seven goals, three assists; Saka five goals, four assists; Rashford five goals, three assists; Sterling four goals, two assists; Sancho three goals, two assists; Mount two goals, five assists; Grealish one goal, zero assists.
Sterling’s numbers do not demand automatic selection above all others, although he has not always been helped by Chelsea’s changing of the guard and injuries forcing them to plug gaps.
Parachuted into unfamiliar territory at left wing-back against Salzburg in the Champions League, then all at sea like Robinson Crusoe as a makeshift right wing-back at Aston Villa last Sunday, he has been a victim of his own versatility.
But going head-to-head with Rashford at a feverish Stamford Bridge was an ideal chance for
Sterling to remind us who deserves to be Kane’s wingman on the Arabian Gulf.
Not for the first time this season, he only sized up the game like a Savile Row tailor with a tape measure when it was crying out to be taken by the scruff of the neck.
Sterling is at his best when he is darting into the box, committing defenders with his twinkling feet, but for 87 minutes Chelsea’s approach work was nearer Fred Karno than Fred Astaire. They were so disjointed initially that, for the third game running, Marc Cucurella was hooked in order to accommodate a change of shape.
And even when Sterling finally raised a gallop, going down in the box under Victor
Lindelof’s escort, referee Stuart Attwell was not interested.
It was no surprise when he was put out of his misery and replaced by Armando Broja 11 minutes from time. Rashford, on the other hand, looked a threat – purposeful, direct and sprightly.
Twice, in the space of five minutes, he came close to breaking the deadlock. Slipped in by a perceptive Bruno Fernandes pass, he was only denied by in-form Chelsea keeper Kepa Arrizabalaga’s sprawling save.
Then Rashford, leaving the struggling Cucurella in his wake, went for power ahead of subtlety, Kepa coming to the Blues’ rescue again. While another opportunity to reclaim top of the bill passed Sterling by, Mount at least lived up to his appearance as cover star of Tatler magazine’s December issue.
For unfathomable reasons, Mount has been accused of enjoying teacher’s pet favouritism for club and country – despite underlining his quality by winning Chelsea’s player of the season gong for the last two seasons.
In tight games against formidable opponents, Mount has the enviable knack of making players around him look good, even if he is not dictating terms personally.
Square pegs and round holes are rarely a misfit when Mount is on parade at the top end of the pitch.
He told Tatler he had never been to a pub, but for 87 minutes this was the kind of frustrating game to make you break the habit of a lifetime.
Jorginho’s flawless nerve from the spot looked to have won it, but Casemiro’s stoppage-time equaliser ensured justice was done.