Raheem Sterling’s Arsenal loan COST Chelsea €35m

Raheem Sterling is one of 20 players to leave Arsenal this summer, with the Emirates club having announced that a score of players will depart at the end of the campaign.

The attacker was a shock arrival at the club on loan from Chelsea last summer, but the 30-year-old struggled to impress at the Emirates Stadium and departs having made little mark on the first team.

Indeed, the 2024/25 campaign was by some distance the poorest of his professional career as he managed just one goal for Arsenal in the FA Cup while he posted a further five assists across all competitions.

Unsurprisingly, the Gunners have elected to send Sterling back to Chelsea, with his reputation further tarnished and his value having dropped alarmingly.

Sterling has become a big problem

When the Blues sent the former Manchester City winger to Arsenal, his Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) sat at a healthy €55.2 million. Although he was coming off a disappointing campaign, hence the willingness of the Stamford Bridge side to allow him to leave, this was still roughly in line with what the club paid for him. No big trouble, then.

But now Chelsea face a major problem selling a player who still commands big wages but has seen his value plummet.

After a year at the Emirates, Sterling’s value has dropped €37.7m to just €17.5m. In theory, Sterling’s move across London has cost the Blues a fortune. The gamble that he would perform and at least maintain his value has backfired, with the winger looking as far from the top level as he ever has.

The 30-year-old still has a couple of years left to run on his contract, which is still worth a reported €40m (£34m) in wages to the England international.

Chelsea want to strengthen their squad as they prepare for a return to the Champions League, showing that Enzo Maresca has little interest in re-integrating the player back into the fold.

Their concern is now a similar one to the problem facing Manchester United over Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford: they have a big-earning player with no future in the first team and few apparent ways out.

The Saudi Pro League could come to United’s rescue over Sancho, and it may be that this is a solution for Chelsea with Sterling, too. Otherwise, no easy fix for the Blues is obvious.

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