Roy Hodgson believes Raheem Sterling’s trials and tribulations, most obviously the player’s battle with his employer, Liverpool, will prepare him mentally to become a major star in the future.
The England manager, who has Sterling in his squad for the friendly against the Republic of Ireland on 7 June and the Euro 2016 qualifier with Slovenia seven days later, said earlier in the week he worried for Sterling and all players who have fame thrust on them at an early age.
Hodgson went on to speak about Sterling’s honeymoon period being over, in terms of the slack that is cut to young players who break through with a bang and how he would have to learn to deal with forensic scrutiny of his every move, on and off the field.
Sterling was caught up in a storm last October when he told Hodgson he was too tired to start in the qualifying tie against Estonia but he and his agent have sparked deeper controversy with their attempts to work an exit strategy from Liverpool. The club’s fans were upset at the interview Sterling gave to the BBC, in which he spoke of his situation, and the gloves have come off in recent days. It is now clear Sterling is resolved to push for a transfer.
It was clear Hodgson did not miss the wearying politics of the contractual sagas he used to face as a club manager but he sought to see beyond the acrimony and how Sterling might emerge for the better.
“I think he has ridden several situations when he’s been in the headlines for other than football reasons, and he’s ridden those very well,” Hodgson said. “The games I’ve seen him play recently, even though Liverpool haven’t been at their very best, I still think his contribution is a good one so I’m rather hoping that this season will make him even stronger.
“He will lose none of his football qualities whatsoever and maybe he will be mentally a bit more prepared for what being a star at Liverpool and England means. Let’s also be fair. How many players could we name who have lots and lots of caps for England who have not found themselves every now and again in the headlines.”
Hodgson said, a little ruefully, that all managers ought to make players aware “the very nice period where you’ve burst on the scene and everyone is saying nice things about you will be a short-lived one” and they ought not “to be surprised when everyone has accepted your star status and things turn”.
Hodgson added: “When players show a lot of talent and break on to the scene there’s a lot of laxity in terms of the criticism that comes their way. Because people only see the potential, they see the possibilities and they see the obvious talent the player has, they turn a blind eye to an awful lot of other things, as they don’t want to stymie the progress.
“But that doesn’t last very long if you’re a Jack Wilshere, a Raheem Sterling or a Daniel Sturridge. Pretty soon people say: ‘Yeah, he’s a decent player.’ And you can even go from being embryonic to being a fantastic star. Then people look at every single thing you do. Then people stop looking for the benefits your game gives and they start looking for the potential negatives.”
Hodgson simply wants to see a focused Sterling on international duty and he hoped that an England get-together might even serve as a release from the domestic tensions.
“When I meet up with Raheem I’ll make it clear to him I’m really pleased to see him again, I’m really looking forward to working with him again and that I’m there [for him],” Hodgson said. “If ever he thinks there’s something I can say that could be of benefit to him, I’m available. But I certainly won’t be poking my nose into his business and I wouldn’t even be alluding to it, frankly, as I want Raheem, when he comes to England, to think about England and not to think about Liverpool and contracts.”
