Mauricio Pochettino claims Raheem Sterling can become the ‘new Zidane’ with Chelsea

Raheem Sterling moved to Chelsea last season in July.

Mauricio Pochettino claims Raheem Sterling can become the ‘new Zidane’ with Chelsea

Pochettino and Sterling (Via The Independent)

Chelsea head coach Mauricio Pochettino made an unlikely comparison between Zinedine Zidane and Raheem Sterling. The new Chelsea boss moved to Stamford Bridge back in July and has since then seen the club struggle occasionally, racking up a streak of winless games. Under owner Todd Boehly, the Blues have brought in multiple players on massive transfer fees. However, the 28-year-old English winger made the move from Premier League Champions Manchester City back in 2022.

Speaking to the press, Pochettino drew comparisons between Raheem Sterling and Juventus and France Legend Zinedine Zidane. Sterling was booed by his own fans back in May when Chelsea faced Bournemouth, which ended 3-1 in favor of the former. “Maybe Sunday can change these boos to claps,” said Pochettino.

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He pointed out how Real Madrid was initially disappointed in Zidane who was brought to the Santiago Bernabeu with high hopes and for a huge transfer fee. Pochettino also said that the Frenchman took 7, 8, and even 9 months to reach his best. Further, urging Chelsea fans to remain patient with Sterling as well.

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He also added that a player of Sterling’s existing experience helped a lot in guiding the young players aged 19,20,21 to get to their best. “We’re happy because he is a player with experience that can help the young guys to evolve,” said the coach when asked about the former Manchester City man.

Mauricio Pochettino reiterated that he was more than happy with his performance and was impressed by the way he handled himself over the period of the last two weeks. After “suffering” in previous seasons, both Coach and player strongly believe that it is time to get back to winning ways.

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How Chelsea is likely to Line-up vs. Bournemouth?

Chelsea are back in action in the Premier League after the International Break. Bournemouth are the first opponents as the Blues look to get back to winning ways and move up the table. Pochettino’s side are on the back of a 1-0 loss to Nottingham Forest. With Armando Broja and Benoit Badiashile returning to first-team training, Chelsea will look to field their best 11 against 16th-placed Bournemouth.

Chelsea players
Chelsea players (Via 90min.com)

Robert Sanchez is likely to retain his spot in between the sticks in spite of failing to impress in the International break. With captain Reece James ruled out with an injury, Frenchman Malu Gusto takes his spot as right-back. Pochettino is likely to trust veteran defender Thiago Silva as center-back even though the player made an error leading to the goal against Nottingham. Axel Disasi is the likely candidate to start alongside the Brazilian. Levi Colwill is the favorite to start on the left.

New signing Cole Palmer grabs his spot at attacking mid while Enzo Fernandez and £115 million man Moises Caicedo are the go-to partners for the Spanish coach in midfield.

As for their attacking options, Nicolas Jackson looks likely to start as a striker, with the Senegalese striker bagging his first goal earlier this month. Raheem Sterling has been backed by Pochettino to start against The Cherries. On the left wing, Ben Chilwell is likely to start after Pochettino also commented on him being used upfront, in spite of being a traditional left back.

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