Raheem Sterling is expected to have earned a huge amount of money after agreeing to terminate his contract at Chelsea.
Chelsea and Sterling cut ties last month after a mutual agreement to cancel his deal, after a very unrewarding three-and-a-half-year stay in London.
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The England international has fallen out of favour with both club and country since joining the Blues in a £50 million transfer from Manchester City in 2022. He signed a five-year contract at Stamford Bridge with a hefty salary of £325,000 per week.
However, he failed to live up to expectations and only managed 19 goals in 81 games.
Sterling fell out of favour under former manager Enzo Maresca and was loaned to Arsenal for the 2024/25 season, scoring just once in 28 appearances. – New manager Liam Rosenior was crystal clear that he had no interest in Raheem Sterling and thus the race was over.
After returning to Chelsea, he was unable to play a single senior game after being exiled to the so-called “Bomb Squad”, which was forced to train separately from the rest of the team.
Despite Maresca leaving Chelsea last month, there was no turning back for Sterling – with the Blues confirming on January 28 that he had left the club by mutual consent.
The Press Association claims that Sterling waived part of what he was entitled to in the remaining 18 months of his deal to secure his departure from the club.
Nevertheless, former Liverpool CEO Christian Purslow – who oversaw the signing of Sterling from QPR during his time at Anfield – believes the striker will have secured a huge payout as part of his deal to leave Chelsea.
During an appearance on the podcast The Football Boardroom, Purslow, former chief executive of Aston Villa, said: “So we’ve said that £17 million to £24 million, that’s what Raheem is entitled to. It seems to me that from Raheem and Chelsea’s point of view, Chelsea would probably try to settle this deal somewhere in the region of £15 million to £20 million.”
“And let’s not forget the background you have given about every footballer. If their agent walked into the room and said, ‘Listen, we’ve got an approach from the club. It doesn’t work. They want us to consider taking a reduction in what we are entitled to for cash today, to draw a line under this matter and make amends.'”
“For the player to agree to do so, they must see an opportunity for benefit from being clubless.”
Purslow added: “From Chelsea’s perspective, and let’s just stress the point – Raheem’s base salary is not the end of it. They want tax contributions, employer’s national insurance contributions – 13.8 percent on top of that. Maybe some retirement contributions, maybe he would have an award in team bonuses whether he plays or not.”
“My suspicion is that if Raheem is entitled to £24 million today, it will approach £30 million if he stays at Chelsea and doesn’t kick another football.”
Purslow went on to predict the final settlement amount Sterling may have agreed with Chelsea to leave the club early.
“I would say based on that information, £19 million to £20 million as a settlement, which would have saved Chelsea close to £10 million,” he added.
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Where can Raheem Sterling go next?
Sterling (31) is now clubless and can join another club despite the transfer window being closed. That flexibility could make him an attractive option for clubs who failed to sign their desired attacking targets in the winter window.
He has been heavily linked with three London clubs: Chelsea’s neighbours Fulham, as well as West Ham and Tottenham.
Clubs in Italy and Germany are also said to be interested in the winger.
Football journalist Henry Winter: “He has certainly spoken to leading clubs in the top three in leading leagues, as a clubless player. He has obviously also spoken to clubs in this country.”
“It’s a balancing act for him because he has a young family and doesn’t want to move them if it’s just for a short period of time.”
“So I guess part of the negotiations will be about the length of the contract, if he goes abroad. I’m sure he would prefer a club in London.”
