Chelsea Raheem Sterling declares he was played out of position last season
Chelsea ace Raheem Sterling has claimed he was deployed out of position last season, which has contributed to a poor show from the former Manchester City star.
But this season, the 28-year-old has been electric under new manager Mauricio Pochettino and already has two goals and an assist in his last three games for the Blues. Hopefully, he kicks on and takes his performances to a higher level.
The England international struggled to find the back of the net last season, scoring only nine goals in 38 outings across all competitions. However, a significant uptick in his play has led to him emerging as Chelsea’s finest player.
Sterling’s impact has been seen on the pitch; he drives the team ahead with his surging runs and is a constant threat to the opposition. This is due to Pochettino allowing him to operate from his preferred position, (h/t Metro) as he told Sky Sports:
‘‘I was happy obviously, I think we started half decently against Liverpool and then with the loss last week [against West Ham] we needed to get a win here. I’m just happy to contribute to that.”
‘’It was a bit of frustration from last season from myself personally because I felt like I was always coming with my back to goal. A bit deep, and I wasn’t giving myself enough chances to get into the box.”
The main issue stems from the club’s four managers last season, each of whom brought a unique style to the table. Because of this, it is obvious that each manager will have a different idea of how a player should play, and some players may end up playing in positions where they cannot give their best effort.
This is what happened with Sterling, who wasn’t particularly dangerous even when Kai Havertz was positioned as a centre-forward and laboured tirelessly to score goals.
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The England international, though, has excelled under Pochettino and has posed an unrelenting threat to the opponents. The 28-year-old is in the driver’s seat of the attack and appears determined to end the season successfully.