Journo: Chelsea star Raheem Sterling’s return to 2022 World Cup with England not certain

Here is why Chelsea star Raheem Sterling missed the game between England and Senegal

In what has emerged as a shocking revelation regarding the absence of Chelsea star Raheem Sterling, the English winger had to fly back to England after his home was raided by armed invaders while his partner and young children were at home, according to Fabrizio Romano.

It emerged sometime before kick-off that Raheem Sterling will not be involved in the game against Senegal but it did not really affect the Three Lions on the pitch as Gareth Southgate’s men steamrolled 3-0 past the African nation to set up a date with France for the quarterfinals.

Sterling is one of Southgate’s most important players and has been a mainstay in the English manager’s team irrespective of his form with his club. Despite Marcus Rashford and Phil Foden having better seasons than him, Southgate stuck with the Chelsea man as his starter.

It is very likely that Sterling would have started the game last night had he been available for selection but what happened to him and his family is devastating to hear. Our thoughts remain with the Chelsea star right now and certain things are more important than the sport.

Romano claims that it still is not clear when Sterling will return to Qatar and if he will and it is understood that Southgate and the FA are fully behind the Chelsea star in all this and will respect him in whatever decision he makes regarding returning.

England take on France next weekend and luckily for the Three Lions, they have enough players to play instead of the Chelsea winger. Phil Foden, after his impressive showing yesterday, is the prime contender but it could also be one of Marcus Rashford or Jack Grealish.

Sterling joined Chelsea from Manchester City in the summer and he hasn’t really had the kind of impact expected of him. The English star is still struggling to adapt to West London and it might take him some more time to become influential for the Blues.

The 27-year-old has had a difficult time at Chelsea, where he only scored five goals and provided two assists in 19 appearances in all competitions. It remains to be seen if he can have a better second half to the season and pull Chelsea back up.

More Chelsea News:

• Chelsea step up interest to sign Bayer Leverkusen’s Jeremie Frimpong in the summer
• Chelsea are willing to bid for AC Milan midfielder Ismael Bennacer
• Former Chelsea defender urges the club to sign England midfield duo Declan Rice and Jude Bellingham

Right now, Sterling deserves to be with his family and he deserves all the time he wants. Let’s hope he and his family recover from this trauma and the winger returns to football soon.