Raheem Sterling has been hailed as one of Chelsea's most important players by Ben Chilwell as the struggling Blues forward continues to be linked with a summer transfer.
Sterling, 28, became the first signing of the Todd Boehly era in a £50million deal back in July but has failed to emulate the goalscoring form that made him a regular in Manchester City's title-winning teams.
And Sterling's inconsistent performances, coupled with an influx of expensive January arrivals, has led to speculation that the Blues could even attempt to offload the England star just 12 months after luring him to Stamford Bridge once the transfer window reopens.
But Chilwell has spoken out of defence in Sterling and stressed that the versatile forward brings far more than just goals to the team - both on and off the pitch.
Speaking to Parimatch ahead of Saturday's clash against Leicester, the Blues left-back said of Sterling: "He’s a brilliant football player, so on the pitch, we all kind of knew what we were getting. We knew he was going to impact our team with a lot of goalscoring opportunities, with goals and assists. But of course, me and the boys who play at England know that in the changing room and around the training ground, he has a big impact.
"Even though he’s still young, he’s very experienced, he’s played a lot of international football, he’s played a lot of club games in the Premier League. He’s brought a lot of experience, which he’s using to help people across the team, especially the younger players.
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"He’s a good addition to the group in terms of his playing style and how he wants to affect the game. And then in the changing room as well, he’s brilliant."
A host of top clubs have been credited with an interest in Sterling in recent weeks, but it is believed that the Chelsea ace has no interest in moving clubs again. And he sent Blues fans a timely reminder of the quality he possesses by bagging his seventh goal of the season in midweek as Chelsea booked their spot in the Champions League quarter-finals.
Chelsea, like Sterling, have struggled to live up to expectations this term and could even relinquish their spot amongst Europe's elite next year following a collapse in form under new head coach Graham Potter.
The highly-rated boss was pinched from Brighton to succeed Thomas Tuchel earlier in the season after working wonders on the south coast. But the 47-year-old has struggled to replicate his previous feats at his new club and was under significant pressure from the club hierarchy and the Stamford Bridge faithful prior to Chelsea's priceless win over Borussia Dortmund in midweek.
