Izuchukwu OkosiChelsea and England forward Raheem Sterling on Thursday held a press conference to address some burning issues regarding his club and international careers and reveals why a move to Chelsea from Manchester City became imperative.
The winger was sold to the Blues for £47.5m in a deal that has surprised some football icons and some sections of the media.
“The move came about because as a person you strive to achieve stuff. I felt my playing time at Man City was getting limited and you can’t afford to waste that time. I didn’t want to see my time rising and falling so I made the change.”
“I tried to fight and change the situation but I couldn’t and I came here.
“I’m 27. I know my standards, I know, what I can bring to a team and I won’t accept anything less,” Sterling told the packed media.
On how Tuchel convinced him to put pen on paper for Chelsea, Sterling had this to say:
“He (Tuchel) said he wanted my directness and how I run in behind as well as how I attack the full backs which is something he wants to see a lot of.
Football fans are generally known to boo opposition players and Sterling spoke about the boo boys who gave him an unwelcome reception in 2018 whilst he played for Manchester City.
“It hasn’t been on my mind at all. I can’t let abuse from individuals affect my perception of a club,” the pacey forward remarked.
Sterling believes that Chelsea will continue to be a force with the new owners at the club.
“Chalsea have been in four or five finals in recent years. It shows they competing and are only going up so with the new owners, in it all, made sense.
Sterling rounded off with comments about his impact in the careers of younger players as a senior international and important figure in the dressing room.
“No matter how old you are, it’s always good to try to nurture other people, no matter what profession it is. I had Steven Gerrard put his arm around me when I was, younger. That’s what I try to do,” Sterling concluded.
Sterling was in Chelsea’s side that defeated Everton 1-0 on Saturday in their season opener. He even scored a ‘goal’ that was ruled out for offside.
Izuchukwu Okosi is a Nigerian sports and entertainment journalist with two decades of experience in the media industry having begun his media journey in 2002 as an intern at Mundial Sports International (MSI) and Africa Independent Television (AIT), owners of Daar Communications Plc.
In October 2004, Okosi joined Complete Communications Limited, publishers of Complete Sports newspaper and Complete Football magazine as a reporter and later script writer for the Complete Sports studio.
He worked there for 13 years until October 2017.
Okosi also worked various times as Correspondent, Content creator and Editor at Sports Market International Magazine, Opera News, All Nigeria Soccer Media and Iconic Media Watch.
He also undertook freelance writing gigs for some local and international organizations.
Okosi is a member of the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Association of Movie Producers (AMP), Association of Voiceover Artistes of Nigeria (AVOA), Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN) and Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ).
He has been part of cast in some Nollywood movies and radio dramas including Blood Money 2, Scores To Settle, Dead End 2, Another Campus Tale and Battle Line.
Aside mainstream media and the entertainment industry, he has interests in scouting/unearthing of talents in the sports and creative sectors, exports business and property development.
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