Just when you thought the West Ham transfer rumour mill couldn’t get any more bizarre, talkSPORT have linked the club with a move for someone nobody expected.
And no, it’s not Exequiel Palacios again—it’s Chelsea’s forgotten man and former England international Raheem Sterling.
According to the report, Chelsea are willing to loan the 30-year-old out this season, and his preference is to remain in London. Whether that works in West Ham’s favour remains to be seen. His move to Arsenal, rumoured to be for similar location-based reasons, never materialised—but you’d imagine he’d find it easier to get into the Hammers’ starting XI.
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Sterling’s form has fallen off a cliff since his £50m+ move from Manchester City to Stamford Bridge, and it’s likely that Chelsea would need to subsidise a large portion of his wages if a deal is to be done.
Graham Potter, of course, knows the winger well from his brief time managing him at Chelsea, and even had to defend Sterling during a difficult spell, saying:
“The team isn’t functioning as well as we’d like, as I’d like, so that has an impact on the individuals—and Raheem is an individual in the team.”
“The work for us is to try to improve the team, improve the structures—and I have no doubt about Raheem’s ability. He’s a top, top player.”
Whether that means there’s room for Sterling at West Ham is another matter. Having spoken at length about squad unity and building a system-first team, Potter may think twice before adding a high-profile, high-earning figure who could disrupt the balance.
Interesting? Yes. Likely? Not so sure.