Raheem Sterling

[Madmax 9,219]

Again, even when playing for Shakhtar, the best team in Ukraine by far, he didn't score or assist much. I don't understand how you could even argue that.

This is the key thing that people can't seem to get about Willian. The guy simply cannot score goals. It has never been a part of his game, and at 27 it would take something unprecedented for him to suddenly come up with that ability. I made a couple of posts about this in some thread earlier -

He doesn't come close to being prolific Shakhtar/Anzhi days (league numbers) :

07/08 - 0 goals, 2 assists (20 appearances)

08/09 - 5 goals, 5 assists (29 appearances)

09/10 - 5 goals, 5 assists (22 appearances)

10/11 - 3 goals, 10 assists (28 appearances)

11/12 - 5 goals, 16 assists (27 appearances)

12/13 - 3 goals, 7 assists (21 appearances)

That's 21 goals and 45 assists from nearly 150 games. A goal every 7th game and an assist every third game isn't that impressive given he played in a two-team league.

Good point, but Willian has been outscored by more or less all his competitors in that Shakhtar side when afforded similar game time :

Alex Teixeira

09-10 : 0 goals (3 appearances)

10-11 : 5 goals (26 appearances)

11-12 : 7 goals (26 appearances)

12-13 : 10 goals (27 appearances)

Douglas Costa

09-10 : 5 goals (13 appearances)

10-11 : 5 goals (27 appearances)

11-12 : 6 goals (27 appearances)

12-13 : 5 goals (27 appearances)

Jadson

07-08 : 7 goals (27 appearances)

08-09 : 1 goal (26 appearances)

09-10 : 9 goals (26 appearances)

10-11 : 5 goals (24 appearances)

11-12 : 3 goals (11 appearances)

Ilsinho

11-12 : 1 goal (7 appearances)

12-13 : 6 goals (19 appearances)

Mkhytaryan

10-11 : 3 goals (17 appearances)

11-12 : 10 goals (26 appearances)

12-13 : 25 goals (29 appearances)

The guy's simply not a goalscorer and never has been. Although credit to him for the assist numbers he racked up in 10-11 and 11-12, nobody comes close to it in that side during that period.

He deserves immense credit for the crucial contributions he has made in the final third since January, but we simply cannot expect him to sustain or better it over a season. A goalscoring wide man is the first box I want us to tick over the summer, whether or not Willian is moved inside permanently.

[LDN Blue 7,903]

'Raheem £ Sterling'

At this rate Sterling will get more hate than when Ashley Cole did the same to Arsenal. Fair enough Cole had actually won something with Arsenal before he moved, but that's not Sterling's fault Liverpool haven't.

I think Raheem's ceiling is incredibly high, it's no wonder you read that Bayern could be weighing up an offer. For the level he's at right now is incredible for his age group and if he continues to develop like this then he can be an integral part of any team.

We have a need at RW for Sterling. Even if Willian was moved to AM, we'd still need a RW cover. Salah will probably sign for Fiorentina permanently and that leaves Cuadrado.

[The Mak 4,459]

Liverpool might be more attacking, but they possess less quality. Messi for example would not manage the same numbers playing for Liverpool, because of inferior service and the inferior quality around him, meaning less space and time to operate in and a lot of moves failing because of a lack of understanding and simple lack of quality.

Willian played in Ukraine (!) and he still didn't manage to rack up the stats. Saying Willian would do better in these areas playing for Liverpool is pure speculation so there's no way you can argue that.

Whether Willian is the better player overall is up for discussion, but his finishing and in terms of goal threat and effectivity, he is without a doubt inferior compared to Sterling. And at 20, I'd bank on him to only improve. Not to compare him to Cristiano Ronaldo in terms of quality, but I'm sure he didn't do much better at a similar age (18-20). The same goes for Giggs, Pires etc.

I said there was no point in comparing the two because my main point is that Liverpool and Chelsea are vastly different teams.

You are essentially saying that he may become better with better players around him, which is not always the case e.g. Cuadrado. You say that he'll automatically get more time and space on the ball when paired with higher quality, I'm sorry, but that is nonsense. We all know that the vast majority of teams will park the bus against us, leaving a lot less "space and time to operate in" compared to Liverpool, so let's just get that straight.

My point is, that if he fails to step up his game to meet Chelsea standards, what can he fall back on? His great work ethic? His professionalism? So far he is nothing but an overhyped one trick pony with poor finishing. The only exceptional talent he seems to have is a knack for not being out of the papers. He has shown me nothing that differentiates him from the likes of Adam Johnson, Scott Sinclair, Ashley Young or Gabriel Agbonlahor etc.

Even think of the players José has already let go: Mata, KDB and Salah; is Sterling better than any of them? Not right now. Can he be? I don't really think so, certainly not Mata or KDB. I personally believe that, at the rate José is going with RWs, he would eat Sterling alive if he didn't hit the ground running.

And just because something is for sale doesn't mean you should buy it (especially if it is vastly overpriced).

[Cech's helmet 220]

Not good enough imo.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsVnSMTph9g

[Magic Lamps 11,692]

Honestly we should give this little man a break. After all the stick he gets from the Liverpool biased media he at least deserves a fair evaluation of his talent. Ok he might be inconsistent and can't finish but he is 20 years old. No one expects a 20 year old to walk into our side instantly. Stil his potential and thus his resale value is immense, so I guess splashing out a good 30m even though it won't yield short term success would be a risky but not a unretracable investment given he is homegrown. He always tries, runs at defenders, has a good eye and pass too. His first touch lets him down at times but his dribbling is decent. In short he is one of the best 20 year old wingers in epl I have seen for years and it is by no means set in stone that he will be another walcott. lets not forget walcott's progress was hampered by injuries and the fact that WEnger never utilized him correctly. Sterling has still ample chance and time to fulfill the promise he is. Should we buy him? Probably not, we got enough players with his kind of skillset potential like Bertrand Traore and Mo Salah. As I always say in those winger threads, the past 2 years and 100m+ gross thrown at the RW have shown this is not the way to go.

[Fulham Broadway 17,306]

John Barnes:

"He should stay at a big club rather than one of the monied clubs . He shouldnt move on, he hasnt won anything yet."

Yes thats the fucking problem John.

[iseah100 5,612]

Who the fuck is John Barnes?

[Waterfall 893]

lol

[Sir Mikel OBE 4,920]

Who the fuck is John Barnes?

25 years ago today.

[cadenza666 221]

and for a reported 40-50m fee? pffft hope City/Arsenal waste money on him....

also have we not learnt our lessons? do not give the scouse bastards any more money! ...

[Spike 12,049]

At the end of the day it looks like Sterling just wants to win trophies, and if he feels like he can't do that at Liverpool than that is fair, it is his opinon afterall. You can't fault the lad for being ambitious. To some players it just isn't about money, it seems. He is a great player, he is going to make a lot of money whereever he goes, whomever he plays for but the same can't be said for glory and trophies.

I'm not taking a shot at Liverpool or defending Sterling. This is just what the situation looks like from me end of the table.

[Spike 12,049]

Interesting analysis

[Madmax 9,219]

I can never make it past 2 lines on a 4chan post.

[Fulham Broadway 17,306]

Quite funny that Man Utd are sniffing around- oh how the the vermin must be fuming, and the streets around Liverpool will soon smell of burning polyester -again.

[hamad138 190]

Hes coming to us.