Crystal Palace full-back Tyrick Mitchell has expressed his admiration and thanks to fellow Brent-born Premier League superstar Raheem Sterling ahead of the FA Cup semi-finals.
Both Mitchell and Manchester City and England star Sterling were raised in the London Borough of Brent, situated in the shadow of the iconic Wembley arches where both Palace and City will contest the FA Cup semis against Chelsea and Liverpool respectively this weekend.
Sterling is five years Mitchell’s senior and had already been signed by Liverpool for an initial £450,000 from QPR’s academy in 2010 whilst Mitchell was playing for amateur side AFC Wembley, before moving to Brentford’s academy in 2012. He was subsequently released when the Bees closed their youth facilities in 2016 and signed for Palace, where he faced off against Sterling for the first time in the Premier League at the Etihad Stadium in January 2021.
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The pair have since shared the pitch a further two times at club level and twice on the international stage, with Mitchell being called up to the England senior squad in March and featuring in two friendlies against Switzerland and Ivory Coast.
"The main thing with role models is being able to relate to them and [Sterling] was someone that, especially being in Brent, that you could see and relate to," Mitchell told ITV Sport ahead of Crystal Palace’s FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea. "You know that he grew up here, he went to school here. Seeing that and seeing what he’s achieved now is something that you can see and you can believe you can do it as well. That’s why he’s such a massive role model in Brent because he’s someone that you can relate to."
Mitchell was asked in the interview whether he had expressed these thoughts to Sterling before to which the full-back said: "I didn’t say that [to him]. But I'm sure he knows a lot of us look up to him and a lot of us thank him for showing us a pathway that you can really do it."
Palace take on Chelsea in the second FA Cup semi-final of the weekend following Man City’s clash with Liverpool on Saturday afternoon. The Eagles have overcome Millwall, Hartlepool United, Stoke City and Everton to reach the last four for just the fifth time in their history. Mitchell has featured often for Palace during that run and now looks set to return to Wembley just a month after making his England debut but with the chance of booking a spot in an FA Cup final.
