Raheem Sterling defended by ex-Man City team-mate after X-rated response given
Raheem Sterling endured a difficult debut for Feyenoord, with many on social media quick to criticise the former Manchester City winger’s display
Raheem Sterling had a difficult first appearance for Feyenoord and Jack Grealish has defended him(Image: NurPhoto, NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Jack Grealish has lashed out at the social media abuse directed at former Manchester City team-mate Raheem Sterling after the forward’s challenging debut for Feyenoord.
Sterling, 31, made his first outing of the campaign for Robin van Persie’s team, but found it difficult to make an impact against Eredivisie outfit Telstar. Van Persie acknowledged he wasn’t entirely taken aback by the former Chelsea attacker’s subdued first appearance, considering the ex-England international had been training alone for months in west London.
However, this didn’t prevent numerous social media users from condemning Sterling’s performance. One message even proposed the former Liverpool academy graduate should hang up his boots.
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Upon seeing this comment, Grealish, who was Sterling’s teammate for both City and the Three Lions, couldn’t hide his frustration at the remarks being aimed at Sterling.
Responding to the post criticising Sterling on Instagram, Grealish wrote: “What a f***ing stupid Instagram post. Man, what’s wrong with you guys? [The] Guy hasn’t played or trained for so long. People like you guys are what’s wrong with the world. Have some respect.”
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Due to Sterling’s work permit for the Netherlands initially being rejected, Van Persie relocated Feyenoord’s training session to Belgium to help the player settle into the squad. He subsequently came on as a substitute in Feyenoord’s 2-1 win, with Anis Hadj-Moussa netting twice.
After the match, Sterling commented: “Haven’t played in little bit, but just trying to keep fit. Been with the team now for a little bit, so it’s just all on building a step at a time and trying to get to match fitness. Good to start your first game with a win, think that’s the most important. [With] the targets that we’re chasing, so a good debut.”
Prior to kick-off, Van Persie acknowledged it would take considerable time for Sterling to reach peak match sharpness. The former Arsenal and Manchester United striker explained: “Raheem trained last Tuesday, for the first time with the group. That was his first time in a group in several months. When you see the choices he makes in small moments, how quickly he thinks and switches, you see that other players also see it and respond to it. That’s how it works.
“You also want to show each other that you’re good too. That was evident in those training sessions. In my opinion, he’s a player of exceptional quality. He showed that in those training sessions. I enjoyed seeing that, and so did his teammates.
“How match-fit are you after not playing for six months? It depends on how he gets through tomorrow. That looks positive. But we have to be careful with him. We’ll talk to Raheem about that. He needs some time to be able to play 90 minutes.
“That won’t be Sunday and it won’t be next week either. But we’ll try to get there as soon as possible. We’ll do it our way, as quickly as possible, but responsibly and calmly.”
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