Chelsea’s prospective signing of Raheem Sterling is likely to go down well with current squad members as the Blues line up a summer transfer.
It is understood that Thomas Tuchel is a big fan of the England international and Chelsea are considering a £35million bid to test Manchester City ’s resolve. However, the Premier League champions are only willing to accept an offer in the region of £60m.
The west London side are yet to make a signing since Todd Boehly completed his £4.25bn takeover in May and Tuchel is eager to strengthen his squad this summer. The German is a keen admirer of Sterling’s abilities and is keen to bring the 27-year-old, who has scored 131 goals for City, to Stamford Bridge.
Sterling is one of the Premier League’s most consistent goalscorers but faces an uncertain summer at the Etihad, with the £100m signing of Jack Grealish last summer putting his long-term future under question. And a fresh challenge with Chelsea after seven years in Manchester may appeal.
Certainly, there is no doubt his arrival would prove popular with the Chelsea squad. Sterling is already familiar with a number of the club’s England internationals, such as Mason Mount, Reece James and Callum Hudson-Odoi.
And Cobham graduate Hudson-Odoi, who first broke into the first team back in 2018, has said he has been inspired to follow Sterling’s career path, labelling the experienced attacker as his “idol”.
"Someone like Raheem is like an idol to me,” he said back in 2019. “The position he plays, and what he's doing for club and country, is an amazing thing, which I will try to replicate myself.
"It's an amazing feeling to have someone like him doing what he's doing and being around you every time. I want to keep learning off what he does. Raheem's a very nice guy, very encouraging, very positive about everything he does.
“When I first came in [to the England setup], I didn't expect him to be so nice. Of course, he's a nice person but when you see somebody always welcoming you, just talking to you, giving you advice on how he plays and just being around you a lot, it makes you feel so welcome in the team."
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Likewise, James has spoken about the difficulty of facing a player with Sterling’s abilities after duelling directly against each other when City have come up against Chelsea.
"Everyone knows how good a player Raheem Sterling is. It’s very hard playing against him," the right-back said last year.
"He's probably one of the best wingers in the world at this moment in time and we’re going to need him for [Euro 2020]. Raheem Sterling is definitely up there [as the toughest] and I’d probably say [ Liverpool ’s Sadio] Mane as well."
