Crystal Palace were given the chance to sign Raheem Sterling on loan from Chelsea this summer.
After Enzo Maresca suddenly decided to banish the England international from his squad with just days until the transfer deadline, there was a late rush to find a new home for the man from Kingston.
If fact, Manchester United even held talks about signing Sterling from Chelsea – according to the Telegraph.
Now, a new story from the Independent reveals that Crystal Palace and West Ham were offered the chance to sign the 29-year-old, but declined for one main reason…
The Independent believe there were specifically concerns about Sterling’s physical condition, which led Crystal Palace and West Ham to ignore the opportunity to sign the forward.
It is said a number of clubs within the Premier League hold the belief that, while Sterling is just 29 years old, his “physical age” is actually much higher due to the sheer volume of football he has played since the age of 17.
At the time of writing, the four-time Premier League winner has made 571 appearances at club level throughout his career, while also making 82 appearances for England.
653 games of football for a 29-year-old is quite remarkable, in truth.
Considering the fact Sterling made his professional debut for Liverpool at 17 years and 107 days old, it means the new Arsenal No.10 has averaged over 54 games per season across the last 12 years.
That is sure to take a toll on any athlete’s physical condition, and while his injury history has actually been quite impressive in that time – missing just 58 games throughout his career – Crystal Palace and West Ham clearly believe signs of decline will begin to emerge soon.
While Crystal Palace and West Ham held concerns about the “physical age” of Sterling, the Chelsea loanee’s salary also surely put the two London clubs off.
The Liverpool academy graduate receives £325,000-a-week from Chelsea, which Arsenal are paying less than 50% of according to the Independent.
Either way, even 50% of that remarkable salary equates to £162,500-a-week, which is still far too high for Crystal Palace to spend on a loanee for just one season.
Hopefully, the deadline day signings Dougie Freedman did make, such as Eddie Nketiah, Maxence Lacroix and Trevoh Chalobah, prove to be a success in SE25, and we can forget all about the strange Sterling saga.
