Raheem Sterling’s shock move to Arsenal in the summer was seen by many as a deadline day masterstroke by boss Mikel Arteta. It was believed that Sterling’s title-winning experience — along with his desire to prove doubters wrong after a poor couple of seasons at Chelsea — was exactly what the Gunners needed. However, things have quickly fallen apart for the former England international, with Arsenal struggling in the Premier League and questions beginning to be asked about Sterling’s suitability as a top flight winger approaching 2025.
Heading into the festive period, Arsenal have won just five of their first 11 games in the Premier League, a disappointing return considering the extremely high expectations that were set the previous season. Sterling himself hasn’t been great, either, grabbing just 1 goal and 1 assist in his first 8 games for the club. Interestingly, Sterling has only started two of those games, with Arteta opting to stick with his preferred wingers of Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka.
In response to Sterling’s poor start at Arsenal, fans have voiced their frustration on X (formerly known as Twitter). Pundits in the media have had their say on Sterling, too, including Stan Collymoore. As reported by various media outlets, Collymoore didn’t hold back:
“Raheem Sterling has been a massive disappointment. He came in and said he was going to give the club his best work, but that hasn’t happened.
“He’s arguably stunk the place out so far and he’s definitely one of the flops of the season having promised to do his best work at Arsenal.
Despite not being at the halfway point of the season yet, it’s hard to deny that Collymoore’s words do have some truth behind them. So far, Sterling has failed to deliver for Arsenal. It shouldn’t come as too much of a shock, though, as his career has been on a downward spiral for the past three years, starting with his decline at Manchester City followed by a failure to get back into the England squad. But with all that said, it might not be entirely fair to write Sterling off just yet — especially considering we’re not even halfway through the Premier League season.
Sterling’s Potential Role at Arsenal for the Remainder of the Season
- Sterling can play on the left or right wing
- He remains excellent backup for the younger and less experienced Bukayo Saka
- Arteta might opt to occasionally use Sterling as a false nine
Over the coming months, Arsenal’s fixture list is packed. First, the club has a Carabao Cup quarter-final against Crystal Palace coming up. According to the #1 app on BettingTools, Arsenal are 11/4 favourites to win the Carabao Cup, so the pressure is on Arteta to deliver.
On top of this, Arsenal are still in the Champions League and also have the FA Cup to contend with in January. Not to mention, if Arteta can get his squad firing again, there’s no reason why Arsenal won’t squeeze back into a title race and face a run of must-win games in the Premier League.
Collectively, all of this means Arsenal will be playing a lot of games, especially if they progress deep into the major cup competitions. This will open up an opportunity for Sterling — as well as several other fringe players — to step in and start more games. As long as Sterling maintains his fitness levels and can find some type of form, he might play a pivotal role for Arsenal from the mid-season onwards.
Even though Raheem himself will admit he’s failed to find his best form since leaving Manchester City, he still remains one of England’s best and most dynamic attacking wingers of the past decade. And at only 29 years of age, Sterling still has his pace and is capable of showing glimpses of his old self, most recently seen in his superb performance in Arsenal’s 5-1 win over Bolton in the EFL Cup third round.
Is Sterling On Loan to Arsenal?
Yes — Raheem Sterling is currently on a 1-year loan deal at Arsenal, set to expire come the end of the 2024/25 Premier League season. Arsenal are currently paying 30% of Sterling’s wages, which is approximately £97,500 out of his £325,00 contract with Chelsea. The loan deal came after Sterling was frozen out at Stamford Bridge by new Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca, who made it clear that he had no plans to use Sterling in his squad. In response, Arteta called Sterling to discuss a potential deal, recently telling the press that “The first call I had with him (Sterling) I knew in the first ten seconds we had to bring him here because he really wanted it.”
Will Arteta Sign Sterling Permanently?
Following Sterling’s poor start to the season, it’s unlikely that Mikel Arteta and the Arsenal board will opt to sign him on a permanent deal. Sterling’s current contract with Chelsea — worth £17m per season — isn’t set to expire until 2027, so Arsenal would have to fork out some serious money to get Sterling on a permanent deal. Therefore, the most likely outcome is that Sterling will go back to Chelsea at the end of the season and seek a permanent transfer to another club. Of course, there’s always the possibility that Sterling will improve as the current season progresses, which might tempt Arsenal to strike another loan deal with Chelsea for the following season if it’s something that appeals to both parties.
Summary
If one thing is for certain, it’s that Raheem Sterling will be desperate to improve his form for Arsenal over the coming months. You can expect more appearances from him — especially in the Carabao Cup and FA Cup — and there’s also the possibility that one of Martinelli or Saka will get injured, opening the door for Sterling to start more games for Arsenal in the Premier League. For now, it’s a case of waiting to see what happens, but don’t be surprised to see Sterling find some type of form over the festive period.
