Sports
Raheem Sterling Rejects Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo Comparisons
Alex Davidson/Getty ImagesManchester City’s Raheem Sterling has rubbished comparisons between him, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo despite his impressive recent form.Under Pep Guardiola, Sterling has become arguably the Premier League’s most potent attacker, netting a combined 35 goals and providing 21 assists in City’s title-winning campaigns in 2017-18 and 2018-19.The Englishman has started the new…
Alex Davidson/Getty Images
Manchester City‘s Raheem Sterling has rubbished comparisons between him, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo despite his impressive recent form.
Under Pep Guardiola, Sterling has become arguably the Premier League's most potent attacker, netting a combined 35 goals and providing 21 assists in City's title-winning campaigns in 2017-18 and 2018-19.
The Englishman has started the new campaign in similarly impressive fashion:
FIFA.com @FIFAcom
13 goals and seven assists in just 16 games for @ManCity & @England this campaign 🔥
@sterling7 bringing that #MondayMotivation đź’Ş https://t.co/YbcwZwDdY4
As a result, he has been included among the nominees for the 2019 Ballon d'Or alongside five-time winners Ronaldo and Messi:
B/R Football @brfootball
The full list of all 30 #ballondor nominees 🏆 https://t.co/WyeAlqAP3J
Sterling believes he will have to maintain, or even improve, his current form over more than a decade to be included in the same bracket as the Juventus and Barcelona superstars, per FourFourTwo (h/t MailOnline's Amitai Winehouse):
“Messi's one of a kind. Bro, if I'm scoring 50 or 60 goals a year for the next 15 years, then you can talk to me about that—right now, don't talk to me about Ronaldo or Messi. I don't want to hear that connection.
“I'm not saying I don't value myself, but those are two guys who have been doing it for 15 years. That's not heard of: 40, 50, 60 goals for 15 years.Â
“There's a long process to go for that. But I'm developing and I want to get my numbers better every single year. If I'm doing that in 10 or 15 years' time, then OK, maybe. But it's early days.“
Ronaldo and Messi monopolised the Ballon d'Or for 10 years between 2008 and 2017 until Luka Modric finally broke the duo's grip on the prestigious award in 2018.
Liverpool centre-back Virgil van Dijk is being widely tipped to again keep the gong out of Ronaldo and Messi's reach this year after he helped the Reds win the UEFA Champions League and come second in the Premier League last term:
B/R Football @brfootball
All 30 of the 2019 #ballondor nominees, ranked by @stighefootball ↕️
https://t.co/PVqQrDu4Nr https://t.co/ZUcmm0prNB
It would be a huge surprise if the award subsequently went to Sterling, despite his endeavours in 2018-19.
But at 24, the England international will doubtless be in contention again in the coming years, and if he continues his blistering form, he could certainly be a winner in the future.
The former Liverpool man's current focus will be on helping City make ground on his former club in the Premier League title race.
The Sky Blues got back to winning ways on Saturday with a 2-0 victory over Crystal Palace after their shock loss to Wolverhampton Wanderers, and Liverpool's subsequent draw at Manchester United means the gap at the top is now six points:
Premier League @premierleague
9/38 https://t.co/UhSPOPZJOb
City are in Champions League action against Atalanta on Tuesday before they host Aston Villa in the Premier League on Saturday.
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