According to numerous sources including the Mirror and The Independent Liverpool Winger Raheem Sterling could be a target for Arsenal, The England International has already been offering a big jump in wages which he is believed to have rejected. Sterling is currently on £35,000 a week at Anfield and is thought to have turned down a deal of £90,000 a week.
Paper reports yesterday suggested that even an offer of £180,000 a week wouldn’t tempt the 20 year old winger to renew his deal, he has already had a taste of Champions League football this season and call me a cynic but I would expect him to hold off any contract talks until he knows what will happen next season regarding European qualification.
Sterling is contracted to Liverpool until June 2017 and it was believed that Brendan Rodgers was close to convincing him to put pen to paper back in January, however negotiations look to have hit a snag with Sterling believed to be unhappy at being played out of position on occasion this season. Liverpool have time on their side with Sterling’s contract having a further 2 years to run but they will be wary of not losing him on a free.
Arsenal have their own contract rebel in the form of Theo Walcott, the England winger who is currently on £90,000 a week and is believed to be holding out for a rise in earnings in line with team mate Alexis Sanchez who is on £130,000 a week. This could be a stumbling block as Walcott has struggled to get back in the first team since returning from injury and he will surely be seeking assurances of his place from Arsene Wenger.
There has been talk of a possible swap deal between Arsenal and Liverpool with Walcott heading to Anfield and Sterling going in the other direction, however this would be very unlikely as both clubs will be doing their utmost to keep their player. The most likely outcome would be Sterling giving Liverpool one more season then moving to La Liga with Real Madrid, the Spanish giants have been repeatedly linked with the Liverpool winger who has 6 goals and 7 assists from 28 Premier League games this season.
It would be a massive surprise if Walcott did not agree a new deal as both parties clearly want to find a resolution, Wenger is still a huge fan and the biggest obstacle with Walcott at the moment is his fitness. He has struggled for match sharpness since returning from an anterior cruciate ligament injury he picked up against Tottenham in the 2-0 FA Cup third round victory last season.
