Since then, his career progression has not proven to be as linear as many had first assumed it would. Though he might not necessarily have hit the heights predicted of him at first, he has had an impressive career to date nonetheless, winning three Premier League titles and the Premier League's Footballer of the Year award in 2020. Despite this success, Sterling has faced his share of criticism (including from me) and more; some of it warranted, others completely unjustified and unacceptable for much more unsavory reasons.
In either case, Sterling did much to silence his critics with an outstanding performance in England's 2-0 victory over Germany in Euro 2020's round of 16. The Manchester City winger scored the first goal of the match and caused major problems for Germany's defense throughout all 90 minutes.
Throughout this tournament, Sterling has proven to be a perfect fit up for England. His interplay alongside star centre-forward Harry Kane has proven to be vital in powering England into the last eight. What makes this even more impressive is that although he had already proven it at club level, Sterling's performances in this tournament have solidified his status as a genuine goalscoring threat - an unthinkable scenario just a few years ago.
Sterling has netted three of England's four goals thus far. He has now scored 15 goals in his last 20 appearances for the Three Lions. To put his dramatic improvement as a goalscorer into context, Sterling had only scored two goals for England over his first 45 matches covering a six-year stretch. At club level, Sterling scored more goals from 2017 to 2019 than he had in the entirety of his career up to that point. When this newfound touch in front of goal combined with his speed and dribbling skills, it is little wonder that Sterling has established himself as a key part of a Champions League-contending Manchester City team as well as an England team which might have international silverware in its future.
On top of his skills and physical attributes, Sterling has intangibles in spades. Though his Manchester City team has often been prone to wilting under pressure, this is an area in which Sterling as an individual player cannot be blamed quite as much. This is where the "unsavory reasons" I alluded to earlier come into play.
Time and again, Sterling has been subject to high-profile racist incidents. The notoriously capricious British media has only exacerbated the issue by often portraying Sterling in a negative light. It speaks volumes of his mentality and intangibles that he has not only been able to compartmentalize these issues and play at his usual level; as I mentioned, he has even improved tremendously throughout all of this.
To be completely honest, I got it completely wrong when I first formed an opinion on Sterling's ceiling. Four years ago, if someone had told me that he'd someday reach this level, I would not have believed that person. Even before this tournament, I was in favour of benching Sterling and starting Marcus Rashford instead because I honestly thought that Rashford would've provided more of an attacking edge. To the pleasure of England fans, I have been proven completely wrong.
Looking back at the list of Golden Boy winners, Sterling does not figure at the very top. Obviously, Lionel Messi has to top the chart, followed by Cesc Fàbregas, and Sterling's former City teammate Sergio Agüero. One could also make arguments for Paul Pogba and Wayne Rooney, while Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland clearly have higher ceilings. That said, to only be behind the names mentioned at this point in his career - once again, though it may have taken a while, Sterling has lived up to the hype.
Is the crowning glory of Sterling's career to date just around the corner? With the way the draw has opened up, it's a distinct possibility.
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