Emmanuel Petit urged Raheem Sterling to prove Chelsea wrong in their decision to banish him, as he predicts a good season with Arsenal.
Some Arsenal fans still feel lucky with the prospect of signing Raheem Sterling late in the transfer window. The winger is considered one of the vastly experienced attackers in England, and he has had a remarkable career so far with significant clubs like Liverpool, Manchester City and Chelsea.
At Man City, he worked with Mikel Arteta, where he was Pep Guardiola’s assistant. Sterling won four Premier League titles during his spell at the Etihad, which prompted Chelsea to sign him for a fee close to £50 million. However, things have gone sour at Stamford Bridge, as earlier in the summer, he was banished from the first team plans by new manager Enzo Maresca.
Sterling was not training with Chelsea’s first team, and while there were issues with his huge wage, Arsenal managed to broker a deal to sign him on loan until next summer. The fact that the Gunners had already sold Eddie Nketiah and Emile Smith-Rowe in the summer made their attack a bit short in numbers, as the signing of the Chelsea winger will have been a welcome addition.
Arsenal managed to crack a good deal for themselves in the Sterling pursuit in financial terms, as they are only paying less than half of his wages. Some reports have stated they are only paying about £ 100,000 a week of the winger’s salary per week and no loan fee for the acquisition.
Either way, it’s a fantastic deal for Arsenal without having any strings attached, as Sterling made his debut off the bench in the North London Derby win away at Tottenham on Sunday. There’s a lot to be desired from the winger this season, as the Gunners fans are waiting to find out what sort of impact he could have.
Former Gunners and Chelsea midfielder Emmanuel Petit on The Mirror has urged Sterling to put in classy performances and show Chelsea they got it wrong with their decision to banish him. The Frenchman also pointed to the positive environment at Arsenal as another reason why players could thrive.
Petit said, “The environment at Arsenal is definitely not the same at Chelsea, so I think that will suit Sterling perfectly,” said Petit. “He knows exactly what type of dressing room he’s walking into at Arsenal. He’s joining a great group of motivated players and a perfect club that is looking to win the Premier League this season.
“He would have seen Arsenal’s improvement over the last three years. I think Arsenal is precisely the right environment for him to improve as a player; it’s the perfect place for him to regain his confidence. He will definitely want to show Chelsea that they made the wrong decision letting him go.”
Sterling does add to the depth of the Arsenal attack and could prove a valuable addition at the end of the season. The Gunners, having finished the last two seasons as runners-up to Manchester City, are eager to close the gap and win the Premier League after more than 20 years.
