New Signings – Fantasy Premier League 2015/16. Sterling

New Signings – Fantasy Premier League 2015/16. Sterling

Manchester City have been relatively busy over the last couple of weeks bringing in Fabian Delph & Patrick Roberts, although it remains to be seen if they join the likes of Scott Sinclair and Jack Rodwell on the list of players who have ruined their careers by moving to the Etihad. One player who is highly unlikely to join that list is Raheem Sterling. Having had their first two bids rebuffed by Liverpool they finally got their man, breaking the transfer record for an English player in the process. In all likelihood there will be another couple of arrivals at The Ethiad but even if there’s not, the arrival of Sterling and his hippy crack has significantly improved the City squad.

Raheem Sterling
Manchester City
Age: 20
Signed From: Liverpool
Fee: £49m

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It has been suggested that young Raheem would have been better served staying at Liverpool for at least one more season because this would have helped his development as he was assured of playing every week, unless he was feeling tired! However City have not spent £49m on him for him to sit on the bench and therefore I expect him to play a significant role over the coming months as City endeavour to reclaim the title. Despite what some might say, they haven’t signed him just because he’s English, the lad can play.

Having signed for Liverpool back in 2010 at just 16 years of age, he came to the attention of the masses in the 2012/13 season making 24 league appearances, scoring twice and picking up six assists. The following season saw him link up to devastating effect with Messrs Suarez and Sturridge, finishing the season with nine goals and seven assists. Much was expected of him last season, but like his teammates he struggled without Suarez and endured a rather disappointing season. However he still finished the season seven goals and 10 assists and was probably Liverpool’s best player over the course of the season.

There’s no denying that at £49m Sterling is overpriced but he has improved season on season, the problem he faces now is that he’ll be expected to do it every week. So where will he fit in at The Etihad? At Liverpool he played everywhere from right wing-back to centre forward so he’s certainly versatile and while he’s unlikely to be played as a wing-back at City his arrival undoubtedly provides Pellegrini with options. With more arrivals likely at the Etihad I expect City to play a 4-2-3-1 system this season with Sterling on the right of the 3, cutting in to support Aguero. Although he could also play in a more central role closer to Aguero.

As I’ve stated above I expect Sterling to be a regular in the City side with his dribbling and pace complimenting the vision and technique of David Silva and the firepower of Sergio Aguero. This should see him improve on the seven goals and 10 assists in registered last season, and with a starting price of just £9.0m he could very well offer some early season value.

Finally, it’s worth noting that young Raheem’s City career got off to a great start this morning scoring inside three minutes of his debut. It was a typical Sterling goal as he ran onto a pass behind the defence before slotting past the keeper, I suspect we’ll see plenty more over the coming weeks and months!

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New Signings – Fantasy Premier League 2015/16. Sterling. This article was written by Kop Warrior

Follow @KenLyons79