Sterling deserves praise as England’s best player and one of the stars of the tournament

[ad_1]

having inspired England has a Euro 2020 semi final victory against Denmark with a man of the match performance at Wembley, rather than basking in the headlines celebrating his latest impressive performance, Rahim sterling was hailed by critics for ‘diving’ to win the penalty which led to Harry kane scoring the overtime winner for Gareth Southgate’s side.

– Olley: England exorcises demons in victory over Denmark
– Euro 2020: Live on ESPN | VAR watch | choose them

Eight days earlier, Sterling was equally outstanding in England’s 2-0 victory in the round of 16 against Germany, scoring the first goal in a memorable victory for his country. But the focus was on Kane, who scored the second goal that sealed the historic victory, given his Golden Boot pursuit. (He’s on four goals, one behind Portugal‘s Cristiano Ronaldo and Czech Republic striker Patrik Schick, before Sunday’s final.)

Sterling entered the tournament with question marks as to whether he would even find a place in Southgate’s starting squad. It seems like forever now, but his surprised reaction when asked after the opener against Croatia, when he scored the only goal in a 1-0 win, whether he had justified his selection summed up pre-tournament doubts about his involvement, but also reflected this problem of having to work harder than most for the praise his performances deserved.

“Did I justify my choice? Sterling responded, in some bewilderment, looking at a media official to confirm he had heard the question. After a moment to collect his thoughts, he simply replied, “I’m trying.

In fact, Sterling’s performances in England’s six games make him an outstanding candidate for player of the tournament. Ronaldo and Schick lead the race for the Golden Boot, but they left the competition in the round of 16 and quarter-finals respectively, meaning neither are likely to win it. Kane, with four goals, could match or eclipse both if he scores at least once against Italy in Sunday’s final.

You could also advocate for a number of Italians as an outstanding Euro 2020 player. Giorgio Chiellini has been a defensive rock for the Azzurri, Jorginho and Marco Verratti excelled in midfield, and Federico chiesa scored big goals at key moments. Leonardo of Spinazzola also made a huge contribution before suffering a serious injury against Belgium in the quarter-finals, but while Roberto Mancini’s players impressed both individually and collectively, none had the same impact Sterling did for England.

From the opener against Croatia, Sterling rose to the challenge. His goal also sealed a 1-0 victory over the Czech Republic, which staged the clash against Germany, in which Sterling once again played a leading role. Against Ukraine in the quarter-finals and Denmark in the semi-finals, his pace and straightforward running caused so much trouble for the opposition that he established himself as England’s most powerful striker. Again.

He not only won the decisive penalty against Denmark, but his presence in the penalty area earlier in the game led directly to the opposing captain. Simon kjaer packing the ball into his own net in a futile attempt to stop Sterling from scoring.

But while he has been a consistent player for the Southgate side, there were valid reasons to question his selection at the start of the tournament, as doubts about his place in England were sparked by his disappointing end to the tournament. club season with Manchester city.

Pep Guardiola named him in the starting lineup for the Champions League final loss to Chelsea in Porto, but the pre-match headlines were that the City manager was ready to let him move to another club this summer in order to sign Aston Villa star (and Sterling England teammate) Jack Grealish. Sterling has only scored one goal in City’s last 16 games, prompting Guardiola to give him up on several occasions, but his performances for England have been a reminder of his devastating ability to injure opponents.

Sterling has managed 14 goal attempts in six Euro 2020 games and leads the table with 29 dribbles – three more than second place Kylian Mbappé. His partnership on the left flank with Manchester United back Luke Shaw was also a major factor in England’s offensive success.

But Sterling has, and always will seem, to struggle to earn the praise his performances deserve. He has divided opinions throughout his career for club and country, for reasons both on and off the pitch. At times he has been a frustrating performer on the pitch, sometimes missing out on easy opportunities to score or play the crucial pass, but there is also the feeling that he is still judged by many for the way he left. Liverpool for City six years ago.

to play

1:27

Taylor Twellman says Euro 2020 is shaping up to be England’s as they prepare for the final against Italy.

Sometimes a negative incident or story from the past turns out to be impossible to rule out and, in Sterling’s case, the 26-year-old has never quite managed to convince his critics that stories of him demanding a bigger contract from Liverpool as a teenager, before leaving for City in 2015, were distorted to portray him as greedy and disrespectful to the club which gave him his big opportunity.

This “greedy” label sometimes described by the media and fans who continue to taunt him with “greedy” chants and the incident of November 2019, when Sterling was kicked out of an English camp by Southgate following a fight with Joe gomez, have tended to overshadow the positive aspects of the game and Sterling’s personality.

He has been a strong activist in the fight against racism in football and society, and has never shied away from pointing out the abuses that have been directed against himself and other. He called for the creation of a player-led anti-racist task force and called racism “the only disease right now”.

But at the same time he spoke forcefully about racism, City sources told ESPN that Sterling is “calm and low-key, really quite humble” and is a member of the club’s “captain’s group” – senior players appointed to raise issues with management on behalf of the team.

A source told ESPN that Sterling’s refusal to delve into difficult topics is why he is divided and subject to the hostility others escape. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why, as England prepare for their first grand final since the 1966 World Cup – also at Wembley – Sterling’s role in the tournament is overshadowed by a debate over the question of whether he dived to win a penalty.

Former Danish goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel called it a “very big mistake” by referee Danny Makkelie, while Denmark coach Kasper Hjulmand said it was a “penalty that shouldn’t have been a penalty”. Sterling, however, insisted that the defender Mathias jensen committed a fault to concede the penalty.

“I walked into the box and he [Jensen] put his right leg out and it hit my leg so it was a clear penalty, ”Sterling said.

TV reruns suggested marginal contact, but contact nonetheless, and that was enough to convince Makkelie that it was a penalty, which the video assistant referee did not reverse.

Only time will tell if the incident will become another long-term issue for Sterling, but regardless, no Euro 2020 player has had a better tournament than one who grew up in the shadows. from Wembley. Stadium.

This has been Sterling’s tournament and he deserves praise for his performance.

[ad_2]

Source Link