A former Liverpool star was tipped to take over from Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as the world's best player, but things have gone south
Raheem Sterling (left) leaves Basingstoke Magistrates' Court, Hampshire
Former Man City winger Raheem Sterling leaving Basingstoke Magistrates' Court(Image: Andrew Matthews/PA Wire)
View 2 Images
Raheem Sterling was once tipped to take on the mantle of the world's best player from Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, but is now without a club at just 31. The winger spent the majority of his career playing for Manchester City and Liverpool - two sides that will go head to head on Sunday afternoon as the Premier League resumes following an extended international break.
In September, Sterling, 31, admitted to dangerous driving and possessing nitrous oxide after crashing his Lamborghini in May. It comes after brief, disappointing stints with Arsenal and Feyenoord following his exit from Chelsea in 2024.
Following his run-in with police earlier this year, Sterling has been disqualified from driving ahead of his next court appearance on November 25. He is currently without a club.
But there was a time when the former England sensation had the world at his feet. Having emerged at Liverpool in 2012 as an exciting prospect, he left the Reds for City in 2015, where Pep Guardiola moulded him into one of the most potent wide forwards in the country.
Sterling’s incredible form between 2017 and 2020 saw him net 76 goals across three seasons for the Etihad club. That even led Messi’s former Barcelona team-mate Xavi Hernandez to predict that the then-24-year-old was on course to eclipse the Argentine and Ronaldo as the world’s best player.
"Messi and Ronaldo have dominated the best player in the world awards for so many years now, it’s hard to remember a time before them," said Xavi. "Messi is the best ever for me - and even though they’re both still playing at a very high level - there will come the day not so long away when somebody else must step into those shoes.
"You look at young players who can be crowned the future best in the world and you still think of Neymar, Kylian Mbappe, Mohamed Salah, and of course Sterling. I look at the moment - and Sterling is winning that race. He’s always been a good player, a dangerous player, but under Pep he has become one of the best in the world.
Raheem Sterling of Manchester City celebrates after scoring his team's fifth goal which is later disallowed for offside during the UEFA Champions League Quarter Final second leg match between Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur at at Etihad Stadium on April 17, 2019 in Manchester, England.
Sterling was world class for a period at City(Image: Getty )
View 2 Images
"I know how Pep works - he would have worked closely with him since his arrival - where he needs to improve and what he needed to work on. We’re now seeing the results of that - he’s still young and can be the world’s best."
Sterling ended his time at City with four Premier League titles, five League Cups and the FA Cup. Guardiola’s tactical shifts saw him deviate from his reliance on Sterling during the forward’s last two seasons, and he decided that he would rather play a more central role at Chelsea, where he never managed to hit the same heights.
The veteran was frozen out by Enzo Maresca at Stamford Bridge before disappointing on loan at Arsenal. He had already burned bridges at Liverpool for demanding to leave in the summer of 2015 and joining a rival just before the height of the Jurgen Klopp and Guardiola years, having regularly been booed at Anfield afterwards.
During his time in the wilderness, Sterling set up RS7 Academy while looking for a suitable training environment for his young son, one that offers an alternative way of playing to the tactics-based systems at high-profile academies.