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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta is a ‘keen admirer’ of Sterling

By Ritayan Chatterjee on October 17, 2023

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta is reportedly a ‘keen admirer’ of Chelsea star Raheem Sterling and the Spanish boss even tried to sign him at the beginning of last season, as per The Athletic.

After joining Manchester City back in 2015 from Liverpool, the 28-year-old enjoyed a stellar time at the Etihad Stadium, winning every domestic competition. During this time, the winger worked with Arteta – who was Pep Guardiola’s assistant until 2019 before the Spaniard opted to take over the managerial position at Arsenal.

Sterling decided to leave Man City at the beginning of last season. Chelsea eventually signed the player for a fee of around £50m, but the Gunners were reportedly also interested in purchasing the Englishman.

According to the report by The Athletic, the North London club indeed ‘explored the possibility’ of signing Sterling to reinforce their frontline. The report further claims that Arteta is a ‘keen admirer’ of the 28-year-old so he wanted to reunite with his former colleague at Arsenal last year.

Sterling to Arsenal

After moving to Stamford Bridge, Sterling struggled to showcase his best for Chelsea last term. But, he has started the new season brightly, scoring three goals in eight league appearances.

Sterling is a versatile player as he can be deployed anywhere across the frontline. So, he would’ve been a great coup for the North London club and his addition, would have helped Arteta to manage Bukayo Saka’s playing time had they managed to secure his signature.

However, they eventually failed to do that and haven’t decided to sign anyone to add depth to their right-wing position yet. Leandro Trossard played a few games on the right flank last term amid Saka’s absence, while Gabriel Jesus was deployed in that position in the last game against Manchester City as Saka wasn’t available due to injury issues.

So, the North London club should sign a new winger in the upcoming transfer window. Pedro Neto has been mentioned as the primary target and the Portuguese is reportedly open to moving to the Emirates Stadium.

So, it is going to be interesting to see whether Arsenal finally manage to sign a new winger in the upcoming transfer window to strengthen their attacking department.