At the time of writing, Arsenal are in fourth position in the Premier League table, nine points behind leaders Liverpool. Mikel Arteta’s men have won just one of their last five league matches, and have lost to Newcastle and Bournemouth in recent weeks. One of the main problems for the Gunners has been how few goals they’ve scored, relatively speaking. Uncharacteristically, Arsenal are currently just the seventh-highest scorers in the Premier League, with Liverpool, Manchester City, Chelsea and even Tottenham having scored more so far.
The recognition that goals win games was perhaps one reason behind Arteta’s late summer swoop to bring the once-great Raheem Sterling to the Emirates on a season-long loan. The 29-year-old has won just about everything there is to win with Man City. And although he struggled to make his mark at Chelsea, the hope was that he’d rediscover his former form and help fire Arsenal to the Premier League title. Unfortunately, for both Arsenal and Sterling, this simply hasn’t happened.
In this article, we’ll take a look at the contributions he’s made in an Arsenal shirt. We’ll also attempt to ascertain whether Sterling’s career is in an irretrievable tailspin, or whether there’s still a chance he could redeem himself before it’s too late.
Raheem Sterling – 8 Appearances, 1 Goal
Things weren’t looking good for Sterling at Chelsea where new boss Enzo Maresca had effectively frozen the player out of the squad. The former Leicester boss went public with the situation and said, “I spoke with Raheem … I said that he is going to struggle to get minutes with us.” That didn’t leave much hope for Sterling, so when Arsenal came in with an offer to take him on loan, it looked like a fantastic opportunity to rejuvenate his stuttering career.
Things haven’t quite taken off for him at Arsenal, to put it politely. To date, he has made just eight appearances for his new club: four in the Premier League, two in the League Cup and two in the Champions League. Of those, only once has he lasted the whole game on the pitch. The others have seen him either come on as a substitute or get subbed off after starting. In total, he played just 333 minutes for the Gunners, in which time he’s scored one goal and made one assist.
These stats are a far cry from Sterling’s heyday when he was an almost unplayable attacking force at Manchester City. Let’s take a look back at some of Sterling’s highlights from what has been an illustrious career… at least until the last couple of seasons.
How Good Was Raheem Sterling?
The best is yet to come.
Welcome to north London, Raheem Sterling ✨ pic.twitter.com/K2YhkSepAp
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) August 31, 2024
The list of honours Sterling won at Man City is very impressive by any standards: four Premier League titles, an FA Cup, and five League Cups. He’s also won various individual accolades, including the Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year for his outstanding performances during the 2018/19 campaign.
It was around that time that Sterling was most prolific in front of goal. He was never an out-and-out goalscorer in his Liverpool days, scoring 10 goals in 2013/14 and 11 the following season in all competitions. He scored achieved similar goalscoring stats in 2015/16 and 2016/17 at Man City. But then something clicked in 2017/18 when he scored over 20 goals for the first time in all competition, with 23 goals in 46 appearances.
Things got even better in the next two seasons, from a goalscoring perspective. In 2018/19, he scored 25 goals in 52 appearances, and the following year he bettered that with 31 goals in 52 games (including 20 league goals for the first time in his career). For whatever reason, things went off the boil a little after that, and his goalscoring stats since have been as follows:
- 2020/21 – 14 goals in 49 games for Man City
- 2021/22 – 17 goals in 47 games for Man City
- 2022/23 – 9 goals in 38 games for Chelsea
- 2023/24 – 10 goals in 43 games for Chelsea
- 2024/25 – 1 goal in 8 games for Arsenal
Sterling Once Pivotal for England
It wasn’t all that long ago that Sterling was one of the first names on the England team sheet. After playing at various age-group levels, he made his senior England debut on 14th November 2012. He made a positive impression and in his second game was named Man of the Match against Denmark.
In total, Sterling has made 82 appearances for the Three Lions and has scored 20 goals. His best goal return came in 2019 when he scored eight goals in just nine games. His last appearance came in England’s quarter-final defeat to France at the 2022 World Cup when he came on as a 79th-minute substitute.
Is There Any Hope for Sterling?
Based on both his few appearances in an Arsenal shirt and his last two seasons at Chelsea, things don’t look particularly positive for Sterling’s chances of turning things around. A player with his experience and talent should be reaching his peak at the age of 29, not fizzling out. He appears to have lost his former ability to make a big impact in games, and whether it is psychological or physical is not wholly apparent.
On the flip side, Kai Havertz didn’t perform well for Chelsea and then took a while to settle into life at Arsenal. However, the German has begun to find his feet and makes regular positive contributions. Arsenal fans will certainly be hoping Sterling can do the same. And if the Gunners are to salvage their title ambitions, everyone involved with the club will be crossing their fingers that Sterling can rediscover his spark sooner rather than later.