Despite sections of the Chelsea fanbase previously showing some concern at signing Raheem Sterling there has been little doubt as to his impact on the club from ex-coaches and players.
The 27-year-old is adding 109 Premier League goals to a side in which the current league top scorer is Marcos Alonso with 26, and offers Thomas Tuchel an output from within that he has not had at his disposal yet.
Sterling alone has won four Premier League titles, the current squad altogether can put up a combined five - Ruben Loftus-Cheek had minimal impact in both the 2015 and 2017 wins. This type of added experience and success is another factor in Sterling's move.
READ MORE: Thomas Tuchel opens up on first talks with Raheem Sterling and Chelsea racism incident
Those that have questioned Todd Boehly's first men's team signing have cited the quality of team he has played in under Pep Guardiola as a reason to be doubtful of the output he can produce at Stamford Bridge, but former Arsenal midfielder Paul Merson thinks that it's the champions that will pay for his loss.
"Raheem Sterling is another player I'd like to touch upon and I think he could well turn out to be the new signing who impresses the most this season," wrote Merson in his SportsKeeda column. "I'm flabbergasted that Manchester City let him go to a Premier League rival - now they'll have to rely on Jack Grealish to get into the box and replicate his end product in front of goal!
"People go on about Sterling's technique and the number of chances he supposedly misses, but he scores big goals for club and country and has done so consistently for a number of years now!"
Merson has also backed Sterling to maintain his new club's place in the top four, adding, "Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea pick themselves as the top three in whatever order and I'd be shocked if anything else were to happen."
READ NEXT:
- Mount, James and Abraham start: The Chelsea Cobham XI that could have been
- Thomas Tuchel's Lukaku verdict after Sterling signing solves £97m problem
- Eden Hazard becomes available to Chelsea as Real Madrid start PSG plan
- Chelsea supporters react to Kalidou Kouliably transfer as Todd Boehly adds to Raheem Sterling deal
- Chelsea's next transfer priority after completing Kalidou Kouliably and Raheem Sterling deals
