Archive September 5, 2025

Raheem Sterling’s performance in the Euro 2020 final was widely regarded as England’s best player just four years ago.

However, he was a bench more for Manchester City the following season and was later sold to Chelsea, their first major signing since their new owners.

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Sterling, age 30, will now spend a season at Chelsea in exile, which will likely contribute significantly to the impasse.

Sterling relocated his young family while signing a five-year, £35,000-per-week contract in 2022.

Todd Boehly, who at the time served as Clearlake Capital’s sporting director, made the $ 50m transfer out of a statement of intent.

Sterling’s issue has been that the club’s leaders are no longer in charge of such a significant deal.

Boehly had less of an impact, but Thomas Tuchel served as Sterling’s head coach.

Sterling spent his first two seasons playing for the club, which included 81 goals and 81 assists as Chelsea finished 12th and then sixth, followed by Graham Potter, Frank Lampard, and finally Mauricio Pochettino.

However, when Chelsea realized Sterling’s first-team position was no longer necessary two years into his contract, Enzo Maresca, the new manager, made the decision to leave.

The earliest we can expect to see the England international play first-team football once more is in January, unless the Blues and Sterling reach a resolution regarding a severance package for the £30 million contract.

That scenario seems to have a small chance.

The London club is currently reportedly reluctant to offer any additional funds. He doesn’t seem to be willing to let Chelsea get away with their agreement.

Both positions have some comprehension.

Sterling will continue to play for Chelsea’s “bomb squad,” which currently includes only Axel Disasi and David Datro Fofana.

After the international break, Sterling is eager to learn more about how his future at Chelsea will look in isolation.

Chelsea’s bomb squad life is not particularly lavish. It is a lonely existence because the first-team facilities are only used sparingly.

Why hasn’t a pedigree member of Sterling’s family found a new home?

Unquestionably, the financial aspects are significant.

Sterling should either be left at Chelsea or should it be his responsibility to give himself the opportunity to prioritize playing first-team football?

Depending on who you speak to, the response is different.

You could assume Sterling had a vision for Chelsea as a potential remedy.

According to sources, Sterling’s emphasis was on the club, with the club’s stated desire to move him on during the transfer window.

Due to his lack of action under Mikel Arteta and the growing evidence that Arsenal would not look to make the loan deal permanent last season, Chelsea has not been in the position to take the blame at the last minute.

You would understand if Sterling thought Chelsea should not prioritize his future.

He prefers to reside close to London. Sterling wants to avoid further dithering his family life because his son Thiago attends Arsenal’s academy.

Sterling, however, did not enter the transfer window with an open mind. He was agreed to take into account any opportunity Chelsea presented, as long as it was beneficial to both parties.

Sources claim that Chelsea brought Bayer Leverkusen and Juventus to the top of the table. Sterling’s desire to remain close to his family predominated, despite his interest.

The London clubs that were sounded out included Fulham, Crystal Palace, and West Ham, but those options never materialized.

Chelsea understand Sterling’s disapproval of his decision to move his family for a second time in three years.

However, Chelsea believed Sterling’s wages limited the choices they had, especially given his desire to remain close to London.

However, it is important to point out that Sterling’s wages are not the be all and end all because he has rejected much more lucrative moves to the Saudi Pro League in the last year. This is a fact that needs to be taken into account.

Indeed, his sudden arrival at Arsenal last season served as a warning.

Given that everything happened on deadline day, he had little time to think about the decision.

It didn’t go as well as he had anticipated, and Sterling was eager for more reflection before any potential moves this summer.

He is said to keep reporting to training and acting professionally until a solution is discovered, according to sources.

Sterling finds himself in the same spot after the window has closed, and Chelsea continues to pay his wages.

Due to injury, England’s defenseman John Stones has withdrawn from the squad for the next two World Cup qualifiers.

The 31-year-old, who arrived at the training camp with a “muscular issue,” which has not improved, is not in his best interest, according to manager Thomas Tuchel.

This season, Stones has started each of Manchester City’s three Premier League games.

Tuchel stated, “He left camp this morning with minor issues and didn’t advance as we thought and hoped he would.”

“Everyone else is here,” the saying goes. We trained 21 players yesterday and 21 players today, so we can hopefully have 21 more available tomorrow.

Other centre-back options for Tuchel include Marc Guehi, Dan Burn, Ezri Konsa, and Jarell Quansah.

Josh Brownhill, a former Burnley captain, is reportedly joining Saudi Pro League side Al-Shabab.

After leaving the Clarets at the end of last season, the midfielder is expected to agree to a two-year contract.

Wesley Hoedt and Yannick Carrasco, both of whom were previously for Southampton and Watford, will play for the club.

Al-Khaleej defeated Al-Shabab 4-1 in the first game of the Saudi Pro League. The team is currently led by former Real Sociedad boss Imanol Alguacil.

The 29-year-old has opted to move to Saudi after being impressed by the club’s project, despite being wanted by Brentford, Wolves, Leicester, and West Ham.

Ross Taylor, a legendary New Zealand player, is retiring at the age of 41 to play for Samoa in a T20 World Cup qualifying match.

The former Black Caps captain will compete in Oman’s regional qualifying event for the Asia-East Asia-Pacific championship on October 8 through the 17th. Her mother was born in Samoa.

In 2022, Taylor’s 16-year international career came to an end. He appeared in 112 Tests and 450 different games for New Zealand. The Kiwis have only Kane Williamson to have allowed more runs.

Taylor wrote on Instagram, “I’m proud to announce that I’ll be pulling on the blue and playing cricket for Samoa.”

It’s a great honor to represent my heritage, culture, villages, and family, “because this is more than just a return to the game I love.”

I’m looking forward to getting to play for the team, sharing my experiences both on and off the field.

In the T20 World Cup qualifier, Samoa joins Papua New Guinea, Japan, Oman, Nepal, Kuwait, Malaysia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.

In February and March of next year, the tournament will be held in India and Sri Lanka for three spots.

Dylan Lawlor received praise from his peers, pundits, and fans after winning a man-of-the-match award on his debut abroad.

“Dylan Lawlor impressed me greatly. Following Wales’ 1-0 victory over Kazakhstan, Craig Bellamy gushed about him.

The 19-year-old’s first senior football appearance since February was her most recent magnificent achievement in a fast-paced career.

So Dylan Lawlor, who is he?

Lawlor, a 7-year-old, was born in Caerphilly, South Wales, and began attending Cardiff City’s academy.

He has participated in his country’s youth squads throughout the age groups and was a key player in their 2021 Victory Shield victory.

Lawlor made his debut for Cardiff’s first team in the fifth round of the FA Cup against Aston Villa on February 28 after a meteoric rise in 2025. He had been drawing National League interest in January, but a minor injury prevented him from leaving. It might not have happened.

In Norwich City, the Bluebirds’ final Championship game of their illustrious 2024-25 season would see the centre-back feature from the bench after Cardiff lost 4-2 to confirm a 24th-place finish.

Under new boss Brian Barry-Murphy, the Irishman quickly adopted a new style upon his arrival in the Welsh capital, just like with many other of Cardiff’s young guns.

Prior to Barry-Murphy’s arrival, Lawlor made his Wales U21s debut against Norway and was later selected as cover for Neco Williams’ trip to Belgium.

Lawlor quickly became clear that the ex-Manchester City Elite Development Squad coach’s methods were effective and that he has since established himself as a key component of a team that is the early favorites to claim League One glory this term.

In five of those games, he has assisted his team to keep clean sheets in order to keep Cardiff top of the league table. He has started all six of his team’s league games this season.

Again, Lawlor’s representatives claimed he had transfer interests from clubs in England, Scotland, Denmark, Austria, and Spain, but this may not have been the case. According to reports, the Bluebirds rejected two “firm offers” for the youngster over the summer.

“We anticipated the squad withdrawals would be challenging.” When it came to Lawlor’s performance in Kazakhstan, “Dylan is a big plus from this week… we have gained a player.” Bellamy said.

What do the statistics say about the display of the teenager?

The best pass accuracy of any of Wales’ starters, according to WhoScored.com, came at the end of the match with a 97.6% pass accuracy.

The Cardiff ace also made one crucial pass, two interceptions, and five clearances, which is the most of any Wales player.

Joe Ledley, Ashley Williams, and Sam Vokes, Wales’ Euro 2016 stars, gave him glowing praise for it.

Williams, a former centre-back, stated on BBC Match of the Day Wales: “I think we’ll see a lot more of him in the next few games because he’s definitely a Craig Bellamy type of player.”

Lawlor’s “outstanding” positional play was praised by Ledley, who added, “I thought he was magnificent. He appeared to have been a member of the team for many years, in his own way.

Vokes continued, “He didn’t look fazed one bit.” It’s difficult for him to go out there on his debut at 19 years old, but he can hold his head high.

Iwan Roberts, the former Wales frontman, believes he has seen enough of the defender’s potential despite Lawlor making just 10 senior appearances for the club and country so far.

Roberts predicted that “He won’t be in League One for long.”

He will participate in the Premier League. His performances will have surprised people.

He never stops improving. A fantastic debut was made.

Although Lawlor may have a chance to impress in Tuesday night’s friendly against Canada in Swansea (19:45 BST), his final World Cup qualifiers against Belgium, Liechtenstein, and North Macedonia will undoubtedly be in his future plans after a brief stint playing the sport with Wales.

His main concern is, however, helping Cardiff reclaim the Championship on its first try this year.

Danny Gabbidon, a former Wales and Cardiff defender, believes Lawlor will only get better after his attention-grabbing performance in Wales.

You can see why Gabbidon said, “You look at what happened to Cardiff City last season, and it was a difficult time for the club, but sometimes there is a little sunshine after the rain, and a lot of young players have been giving the opportunity this season, and Dylan is one of them.”

You can tell from his performance against Kazakhstan that he is still young and that he is only going to get better, and that it just seems very easy and comfortable for them.