With Barcelona the new front runner to take troubled striker Luis Suarez off the hands of Liverpool, their eternal rivals Real Madrid are still being linked with a move for an exciting Reds forward — but instead of it being for the Uruguayan, it’s for Raheem Sterling.
There’s little argument that the 19-year old was England’s brightest star during their failed run at the World Cup this summer in Brazil, and with questions swirling around Los Blancos star Cristiano Ronaldo’s knee, the Spanish giants are rumoured to be plotting a £25mil move to bring the budding attacker to the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium to help supplement an already burgeoning strike force. Now, the question is, will the Anfield outfit look to cash in on a player that has the potential to be a world beater?
Which, of course, spurs the other question of whether or not this particular piece of tabloid fodder has any merit whatsoever. With Southampton captain Adam Lallana hours rather than days away from completing a move to Merseyside and Reds boss Brendan Rodgers interest in both Lille’s teenage prodigy Divock Origi and Benfica winger Lazar Markovic looking more like truth than fiction, maybe Sterling to Spain isn’t quite so far fetched afterall.
Although the Premier League runners-up are under no obligation to comply with UEFA’s strict Financial Fair Play rules for their coming Champions League campaign, primary owner John W. Henry has been rather vocal on the subject and would be hesitant to run afoul of European football’s governing body. If Carlo Ancelotti and company were to come in with a bid in the region of £25mil, the profit that would generate could very well be a tempting prospect — not to mention the allure of playing for a team like Real Madrid may turn young Sterling’s head.
