After a promising start last season, Liverpool starlet Raheem Sterling is now finding it hard to get regular game time at Anfield. Sterling's development seems to have staggered to a halt this season, and Reds legend John Barnes has indirectly blamed Brendan Rodgers and Roy Hodgson for mishandling the youngster.
Discussing LFC's young players on the 5-Times Podcast last week, Barnes bemoaned the modern trend of overpraising players 'when they haven't achieved anything', and suggested that Sterling needs to work harder to improve. He observed:
"He [Sterling] wasn’t handled right by anyone. He had 7-8 good games and was then catapulted into the England set-up. His Agent then wanted more money.
"His final delivery has never been the best, but maybe he feels that because he’s in the England squad and being paid so much he doesn’t need to improve.
"Is Sterling any better now than when he made his debut? He needs to work harder, but we’re guilty for overpraising him"
I absolutely agree with Barnesy here, and it ties into an issue I'm constantly raising on the site. Gross overpraise of players is (arguably) a massive NEGATIVE, and leads to dulled competitive edge, and in many cases, a lack of proper focus. Rodgers is as guilty of this as anyone, especially last season, when his constant servile praise of his players bordered on sickening. To be fair, he's toned it down this season, but it's a perennial problem for Liverpool.
Take Saturday's game, for example: a 4-0 win at home against one of the worst teams the Reds have faced in a couple of years. Liverpool *should* be winning such games, but afterwards, it's the same old story, with players falling over themselves to massage each others' egos, and declare each other the best in the world.
Sterling - reportedly the subject of a £7.5m bid from Spurs last season - is a prime example of the detrimental effect of gross overpraise. A few good games for Liverpool, then promotion to the England squad, and all of a sudden he thinks he's arrived.
As Barnes asks: is Sterling any better now than when he made his debut? I personally don't see any major improvement, and if he doesn't buckle down and work on improving, he may find himself on the Anfield scrapheap like so many other young players down the years.
Author: Jaimie K
Discussing LFC's young players on the 5-Times Podcast last week, Barnes bemoaned the modern trend of overpraising players 'when they haven't achieved anything', and suggested that Sterling needs to work harder to improve. He observed:
"He [Sterling] wasn’t handled right by anyone. He had 7-8 good games and was then catapulted into the England set-up. His Agent then wanted more money.
"His final delivery has never been the best, but maybe he feels that because he’s in the England squad and being paid so much he doesn’t need to improve.
"Is Sterling any better now than when he made his debut? He needs to work harder, but we’re guilty for overpraising him"
I absolutely agree with Barnesy here, and it ties into an issue I'm constantly raising on the site. Gross overpraise of players is (arguably) a massive NEGATIVE, and leads to dulled competitive edge, and in many cases, a lack of proper focus. Rodgers is as guilty of this as anyone, especially last season, when his constant servile praise of his players bordered on sickening. To be fair, he's toned it down this season, but it's a perennial problem for Liverpool.
Take Saturday's game, for example: a 4-0 win at home against one of the worst teams the Reds have faced in a couple of years. Liverpool *should* be winning such games, but afterwards, it's the same old story, with players falling over themselves to massage each others' egos, and declare each other the best in the world.
Sterling - reportedly the subject of a £7.5m bid from Spurs last season - is a prime example of the detrimental effect of gross overpraise. A few good games for Liverpool, then promotion to the England squad, and all of a sudden he thinks he's arrived.
As Barnes asks: is Sterling any better now than when he made his debut? I personally don't see any major improvement, and if he doesn't buckle down and work on improving, he may find himself on the Anfield scrapheap like so many other young players down the years.
Author: Jaimie K
