Trevor Sinclair thinks "world-class" Raheem Sterling will be a better signing for Chelsea than Neymar would have been. The Blues are closing in on the £55million (£45m plus £10m in add-ons) signing of the 27-year-old from Manchester City.
The fee and personal terms have now been agreed for Sterling, who is set to become Todd Boehly's first marquee signing as Chelsea co-owner. Sterling is currently in London – where he completed the majority of his medical over the weekend, football.london understands – but once the move is official, he is expected to fly out to the United States to meet up with his new team-mates on their pre-season tour.
Sterling comes to Chelsea as a proven goal scorer after netting 131 times in 339 appearances in all competitions for Man City. For the most part of his seven-year stay at the Etihad Stadium, Sterling has been a hugely consistent attacker, especially under Pep Guardiola.
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Sinclair, when speaking on talkSPORT recently, thinks Sterling will prove to be a better signing for Chelsea than Neymar would have been. The Blues have recently been linked with a move for the Paris Saint-Germain attacker, who could be sold by the French champions this summer.
"If you look at his [Sterling's] history, the pattern he has had in his career, he is just getting better and better," Sinclair said. "There is no doubt in my mind that he's a world-class player.
"If you had the chance of signing Neymar or Sterling, who would you have? As a manager and a coach, you want consistency week in and week out.
"When he [Sterling] is having a bad game, he will still be a seven out of 10 because he works for the team, he has a fantastic work ethic. Whereas Neymar, if he's not playing and if he's not doing well going forward, he might as well not be on the pitch. That is the difference between the two players."
Sterling is expected to become Chelsea's highest-paid player when the deal is announced. The Jamaican-born England international is set to earn around £ 300,000 a week at Stamford Bridge.
If the deal is announced in time, then Sterling could make his first outing for Chelsea on July 17 in Las Vegas as the Blues take on Club America in their first pre-season friendly of the tour.
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