Ahead of England’s second group game against USA, the ITV Sport pundits were full of praise for Chelsea and England star Raheem Sterling.
Sterling, who has delivered for his country on numerous occasions, has become a key player under the management of Gareth Southgate, and this winter’s World Cup in Qatar has been no different, with the Jamaican-born winger starting both of England’s opening two matches in Group B.
The 27-year-old first made a name for himself in his breakthrough 2013-2014 season for a title-challenging Liverpool side, which included countless electrifying performances which earned him the prestigious 2014 Golden Boy award.
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He went on to impress across seven seasons for Manchester City, winning both the PFA Young Player of the Year and the FWA Footballer of the Year in an outstanding 2018-2019 campaign before returning to London to join Chelsea.
Whilst the start of his career for the Blues has slightly underwhelmed, Sterling continues to be unstoppable on the international stage, with Roy Keane recognising his quality and highlighting what keeps him performing at the highest level.
“We see the clips there; people think that’s an easy position to play but you need that football intelligence” Keane stated during the England vs USA pre-match analysis.
“He’s matured. He’s had a difficult few months at club level; managers change, but he’s got that quality that we’ve seen over the years and people probably underestimate him. He’s a quality player."
Gary Neville, who worked with Sterling as a first team coach during the 2016 European Championship, shared Keane’s admiration of Sterling and made the comparison between his club and country form.
"We’ve got lads who enjoy playing for their country and play better than they do for their clubs, and that’s unlike England” he said.
Also on the ITV punditry panel was Ian Wright, a player Sterling himself has noted as being an early inspiration to him. The former Arsenal and England star provided detailed analysis about the positions Sterling is picking up and the threat he carries in each England attack.
"He’s someone who is loved and you know what he’s capable of,” added Wright. “We saw it in the Euros, [Sterling] is playing a different role. When you look at the spaces he’s picking up, he’s giving Luke Shaw space, he’s giving him that time to get the ball in the box.
“This is his goal [his finish against Iran] , down the centre, the problem we have is when Harry Kane isn’t in there who’s in there? He’s doing that, he’s in there and causing a lot of problems.”
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