>
Raheem Sterling received a generous round of applause from Manchester City fans as he limped past rubbing his right hamstring.
They remember the goals, the assists, the performances, the titles. All of that must seem like a distant dream for Sterling right now.
This, his first start against the club that sold him to direct rivals in the summer, was an opportunity for the attacker to prove to his former manager Pep Guardiola that he had been terribly wrong in selling him.
Raheem Sterling’s clash against his old team, Manchester City, did not go as he wished.
Sterling suffered a right hamstring injury two minutes into the Stamford Bridge game.
Instead, he was perched on his back in the center circle following a tangle with Ilkay Gundogan grabbing the back of his leg inside two minutes.
The grin on his face said it all. There were more poignant memories of happier times as City players joined Sterling’s Chelsea teammates to check on his injured former teammate after he collapsed on the pitch for the second time.
His night was over, as were his hopes of showing his former club exactly what they were missing.
Sterling walks off the pitch in front of the City fans, unable to remind them of his talents.
And Sterling’s premature end was entirely in keeping with what has been largely a forgettable season thus far.
Of course, the standards he’s set for himself mean Sterling is judged by a harsher barometer.
Seven goals for an attacking midfielder is not a bad comeback by any means. However, you can’t escape the idea that Sterling is capable of so much more.
Circumstances have not helped. No sooner had he acclimatized to Thomas Tuchel than the German became the first managerial casualty of the Todd Boehly era.
Adjusting to Graham Potter’s ideas has taken a while; particularly in the games that he was asked to play as a winger.
He has scored seven goals so far for Chelsea, but the term has not been good for him or the club.
Before kick-off on Tuesday night, Potter said: “He hasn’t played, at times, in his favorable position.” Getting to a new club takes time.
‘As we speak, Chelsea have not been at their best in terms of creating chances. As long as he plays on the wing and has rhythm, I think he will be successful.
“When he has played as a winger, it has not worked.”
Sterling won’t be playing at all, at least for the short term; Hamstring injuries, even minor ones, usually take a minimum of two weeks to heal.
That news will come as a blow to Sterling who, following his goal against Nottingham Forest last weekend, would have been hoping for a happier 2023.
Graham Potter has had a difficult start as Chelsea manager with so many crippling injuries
It will also come as a huge slap in the face for Potter, whose players are dropping like flies.
Mason Mount missed Thursday night’s clash with an injury sustained in training on Wednesday. As soon as Sterling pulled away, Christian Pulisic joined him in the tunnel with his own injury.
In addition to Sterling, Mount and Pulisic, Chelsea are also missing Reece James, Edouard Mendy, Wesley Fofana, N’Golo Kante, Ben Chilwell, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Armando Broja through injury.
While Guardiola was able to introduce Jack Grealish and Riyad Mahrez from the substitute bench on Thursday night, Potter brought in relatively untested youngsters Omari Hutchinson and Lewis Hall as he looked to impact the game after falling behind.
In addition to Sterling, American winger Pulisic also suffered an injury in the first half with Chelsea.
Having spent around £300m on players since the start of his reign, it is perhaps helpful that owners Boehly and Clearlake Capital seem happy to splurge on the transfer market.
You have to sympathize with Potter, they’re giving him a pretty heavy hand at the moment.
But history tells us that counts for very little at Chelsea. The new owners seem totally invested in Potter and they should be.
However, Chelsea and their manager need their great players to step up – once he’s fit, Sterling falls into that category.