Sterling has not always been a player that has excited me. I never bought into the Sterling hype. Just never did it for me as a footballer. Had the speed, and the intensity and effort....but the skill and football brain was never there.
But with the Cannibal and Sturridge not around, and Rodgers trying to figure out how to setup the Liverpool cats, it has forced the Raheem of STEEL to have a greater role, and really force him to be better...and he has responded pretty damn well, and is showing a greater aptitude for the game.
There are two sides as to why Rodgers has put Sterling in the false nine role, and must thank my man Dahir for enlightening me.
Liverpool do not have the midfielders that Barcelona back in the day or Spain have to play this system well, as well as players like Fabregas, Messi and Silva who understand this strategy, because they have been training this way for YEARS. So Rodgers thinking he can have that kind of success with the great talents of...Lucas, means that he must be crazy.
But then the other side of the lovely coin are our good friends Balotelli and Lambert. To be nice, the have not been too successful so far. A striker is rated and marked on his goals. So if those G's don't show up on your performance card, then you have failed.
That means that Rodgers has no other choice but to play Sterling as the false-nine, because he is one of the team's best midfielders, but also has a MUCH great attacking threat than Mario and Lambert. So there really is no choice. But with each game, with Liverpool doing their best to learn this system, Sterling is beginning to flourish and develop his game because of the greater responsibility that he has been given.
As well as the goal, Sterling was on the wing trying to provide, linking up with Henderson and Coutinho, and just causing havoc for Chelsea's defenders.
But Rodgers has to realize what system he is playing. In this false nine setup...YOU ARE BANNED FROM PLAYING LONG BALLS.
The ball must always be on the ground. Because as you see the Spanish players, most are not tall, so playing high balls would be futile. Passing must be the name of the game and it was what lead to Raheem's goal, a pass that Chelsea did not see and Sterling finished off.
There were times though when the ball was hoofed up to Sterling, and against Cahill and Terry, who are about a lifetime taller than him, there was only going to be one outcome. So the question is can Rodgers build a great passing team similar to that of Barcelona or Arsenal that can get the best out of Sterling's assets?
I am not going to proclaim Sterling as a great player or be part of the noise about him. But I am intrigued to see what he can do to help Liverpool this season, and how far he can take them. Fourth place is very much in reach as well as even third, but you have to remind yourselves that this is a twenty year old foetus. Putting too much heat on him, could actually mess with his development and it is important Rodgers gets Raheem more help rather than putting even more responsibility upon him that could dent his confidence if things don't work out.
HH
