Official: Chelsea sign Raheem Sterling from Manchester City

FINALLY. Chelsea FC have finally woken up in the transfer window and made a defensive signing that we so desperately needed a forward signing that we may or may not have needed so desperately.

As confirmed by the club, the Blues have completed the signing of Raheem Sterling from Manchester City for a fee said to be £47.5m, with minor add-ons that could take it to £50m. The 27-year-old has signed on for five years at a rate that reportedly makes him the highest (current) earner at Chelsea.

Sterling came up through the QPR and Liverpool academies before making his senior debut at age 17, which made him the third youngest player to ever play for Liverpool. He quickly became one of the most coveted young players around the league, joining Manchester City in 2015 for £44m (plus bonuses), a record fee for an English player at the time. In the seven season since, he’s amassed 131(!) goals in 339 appearances across all competitions, winning 4 Premier League titles, 1 FA Cup, 4 League Cups, and 0 Champions League trophies.

A versatile attacking player, Sterling is capable of playing anywhere across the front line, be it as a traditional or inverted winger, central playmaker, or even as a false-nine. He is quite adept at dribbling, arguably better than all others currently at Chelsea, and is also extremely pacy, which goes well with his ball-carrying prowess. He is a decent creator, though his finishing can be erratic at times — despite that, he’s averaged 13 Premier League goals per season, and nearly 19 goals in all competitions, during his time at City.

Let’s not get ahead of ourselves though; Sterling’s great numbers are in no small part due to playing in one of the most stacked teams under an extremely attacking manager. However, if he can reproduce that form for us, he will have proved an astute signing not just for this season, but for years to come.

“Raheem Sterling is a serial winner and his signing is an important step in strengthening our squad. We are delighted for Raheem to return to London with Chelsea, and we look forward to seeing his world-class talent on display at Stamford Bridge.”

-Todd Boehly; source: Chelsea FC

Welcome to Chelsea, Raheem!

Let’s win some things!