Why Chelsea’s Raheem Sterling is not involved in England vs Senegal

Chelsea star Raheem Sterling to miss England’s World Cup game vs Senegal due to personal reasons

According to The Athletic (Subscription Required), Chelsea star Raheem Sterling is not available for England’s World Cup last-16 tie against Senegal due to a family matter.

The 27-year-old, who has been one of the top performers for Gareth Southgate’s men during the group stages, is going to miss this crucial knockout game.

Sterling has always been one of the trusted players of Southgate irrespective of his current form. He started with the Chelsea man in this World Cup despite a dodgy form for the Blues during the first half of this season. The player responded with a goal and an assist in the opener against IR Iran.

Here’s what the FA Statement says regarding this issue (h/t The Athletic):

“Raheem Sterling is not available for selection for the Three Lions tonight as he is dealing with a family matter.”

We wish Sterling all the best and hope whatever he is dealing with gets sorted sooner rather than later. Family matters come first always.

The 27-year-old has had a tough season at Chelsea, where he only scored five goals and provided two assists in 19 appearances in all competitions.

He was not helped by the fact that the manager (Thomas Tuchel) who brought him to Stamford Bridge, left the club a week after the end of the summer transfer window.

New boss Graham Potter has used him in different positions, including as a left wing-back. Although Sterling does not seem the type of player who would complain about being played out of position, it has not helped the team that he is playing far away from the goal.

We hope that the 27-year-old’s issues get sorted out soon and that he returns to action soon. We need him in form ahead of the restart of our league campaign.

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

For England though, it is a big blow in a crunch knockout game. Sterling has a habit of turning up and getting the job done in the biggest of games. But some things are more important than football and he wouldn’t have missed such a huge game it wasn’t something worthy of his complete attention – we just hope it isn’t anything too serious.