The Value Of Sterling – A Lot Less Than 180k Per Week

Since you started reading this sentence Liverpool’s Raheem Sterling has earned about a fiver.

But he wants more. A lot more. He’s reportedly prepared to turn down a staggering £180,000 per week deal at Anfield.

If these rumours are true, Liverpool should take the money and run – which are probably the only two things Sterling has done with any aplomb this season.

Deluded
The 20-year-old is purportedly unhappy at being played out of position, having played at wing-back in several recent games. However his form in a more advanced role this season hasn’t lived up to last campaign, where he dovetailed spectacularly with Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge.

The youngster, or his agent, are deluded if they believe he’s worth more than the likes of Arjen Robben, Andrés Iniesta, Xavi and Neymar, to name but a few.

Indeed 180 grand is considerably more than departing club legend Steven Gerrard has ever pulled in weekly and almost three times what Philippe Coutinho – arguably more important to Liverpool this season – currently earns.

The player has been consistently mollycoddled by both club and country – given a mid-season Jamaican break by Brendan Rodgers and caught partying in London until 3am the day after he was “too tired” to play for England against Estonia.

Power Moves
It’s time Rodgers called Sterling’s bluff. If he’s unhappy with his exorbitant salary offer or upset at his role in the team, he should be transfer-listed. His true worth would then be determined, as it’s unlikely Europe’s elite clubs would be clamouring for his signature.

Would the likes of Barcelona or Bayern Munich pay him more than Neymar and Robben? Unlikely. Would they play him more than Neymar and Robben? Unlikely.

Sure, he might displace the likes of Willian from Chelsea’s first team or Samir Nasri from Manchester City’s but would either club shell out over £50 million for a youngster who has still to impress over the course of a full season?

If Liverpool were to obtain such a fee for him – and it is believed that £50 million would be a starting point for negotiations – they should snap it up.

Alternatives
Many Reds fans believe Jordon Ibe is a more talented prospect – with the likes of Jerome Sinclair and Harry Wilson also hotly-tipped – and have grown weary of Sterling’s deluded belief of self-worth.

It’s not as if Sterling’s image could be capitalised on by a club willing to sign him – even Newcastle United striker Ayoze Perez has sold more shirts this season than him.

Sterling’s delusions of grandeur may come back to bite him. Many stars who’ve left Liverpool have often found faraway hills are not greener, chief amongst them Michael Owen and Fernando Torres.

Sterling has the opportunity to become a club legend at Anfield, and maybe some day justify a salary of almost £10 million a year.

At the moment, however, his contract stance is the epitome of all that is wrong with the modern game. The value of Sterling, like most currencies, will be determined by what people are willing to pay for it and they faith they have in it. For Liverpool, Sterling at £180,000 per week seems ludicrously overvalued.