Rio Ferdinand has noticed a big difference in Raheem Sterling’s physicality so far this season and is convinced the Chelsea star worked extremely hard during the summer.
There’s no doubt that Raheem Sterling, 28, has started this new 2023/24 campaign like a man on a mission.
The Blues winger has looked very quick and fit in the first three Premier League games, which has helped him put in some eye-catching performances. This included an excellent display in last Friday’s 3-0 win over Luton Town, scoring twice and assisting once.
Ferdinand believes the difference in Sterling right now will come down to the summer work in the off-season.
He told FIVE’s YouTube channel: “You can see he’s been working off-season. With Raheem, there must have been something going on off-season physically for him because he’s come back and he looks sharp, aggressive.”
Sterling has been receiving praise from all angles over the past few days, and rightly so.
There’s an opening in the Blues line-up now, especially with Christopher Nkunku out injured, to step forward as the talisman.
We saw in glimpses last season Sterling show Chelsea supporters what he’s renowned for in attack, but it does like like a switch has been flicked in him across the summer.
The Athletic recently claimed that Sterling has already developed a close bond with Mauricio Pochettino in the past couple of months. It’s quite clear that the trust from the Blues head coach is now rubbing off on the player’s performances.
We think Sterling should be looking to break 15-plus goals across all competitions this season in this Chelsea side. His history from earlier in his career suggests that’s a more than realistic target, too!
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