It has been argued that the conception of the term ‘destiny’ should rather be interpreted as a product of our own choices and deeds, than the result of general luckiness.
Call it luck, karma, destiny, fate or however you please, that mysterious presence has set a rendezvous with Raheem Sterling on Sunday.
The area where the meeting will take place is Wembley Stadium and Sterling will come face to face with it, after Michael Oliver blows the final whistle in the Capital One Cup final between Manchester City and Liverpool.
Sterling made it clear upon his arrival in Manchester that his ultimate goal is to win trophies with the team. On his first interview, he praised the quality of City’s squad and training facilities, highlighting the fact that he arrived at a club “capable of winning things year in, year out”.
Yet this is Sterling’s opportunity to vindicate his controversial decision to sign for the Citizens and leave the club at which he was nurtured.
After an impressive 2013-14 season display for the Reds, Sterling struggled to assist his team’s efforts of regaining a top four spot last season. Amid controversy surrounding his future at Anfield, the English wonderkid added fuel to the – already existing – fire, with his interview for the BBC, stating that he turned down a contract offer worth £100,000 a week.
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Moving to Manchester City in July 2015, he was immediately considered as a part of the Blues’ starting XI, featuring in 24 out of the 26 Premier League games played so far.
According to Squawka statistics, Sterling’s pass completion percentage has increased from last season’s 81% to 86%, with the talented attacking-midfielder scoring 0.21 goals per game, as well as improving his shot accuracy from 53% to 59%.
However, he has not been able to meet his creativity standards, producing only 1.46 chances per game in contrast to the 2.14 he managed to create last season. After 24 Premier League games for City, he has provided his team mates with only two assists, compared to the five he marked after the same number of games in 2014-15.
In his first meeting with his former team back in November, Sterling failed to impress with his performance, creating only one chance, producing two shots, both blocked by Liverpool’s defence and completing 79% of his passing attempts.
Manchester City were ingloriously defeated 4-1 on their own ground and the cup final at Wembley could be seen as an opportunity for vengeance for both the Citizens and Sterling.
The win against Dynamo Kyiv earlier this week has given a boost to Pellegrini’s squad after a heavy defeat by Chelsea in the FA Cup fifth round. Meanwhile, Liverpool have progressed to the last 16 of the Europa League, where they will meet City’s local rivals, and their own fierce rivals, Manchester United.
Liverpool have won three out of the five previous meetings between the two teams in the Premier League, with City defeating their rivals on the other two occasions. Manchester City’s last win against the Reds was back in August 2014, but a League Cup final is a whole different story.
Liverpool have not secured a League Cup trophy since 2012, with the Citizens bringing the title to Manchester in 2014 after defeating Sunderland 3-1.
Sterling, in particular, has featured in 10 Capital One Cup games since 2012, contributing the most for both teams with five goals and four assists in total, reaching the semi-finals in 2015, where Liverpool were eliminated by reigning cup winners Chelsea.
He is now determined to assist his team’s efforts on capturing their fifth League Cup title on Sunday. In order to find himself lifting his first ever trophy to the sky of London, he has to overpass the obstacle that Jurgen Klopp’s team has raised for him.
In a recent interview, he said Liverpool are “just another team to try to get past” on his way to the silverware.
It has been a great discussion of what would happen if Sterling was on the other side of Sunday’s race. According to his agent Aidy Ward, “Working with Klopp – that could have been great. He’s going to get the best out of those players. It could have been a dream come true.”
However, as a consequence of destiny being put in action, dreams do not often denature. It is hard to argue what Sterling’s decision would be if he had the opportunity to touch a crystal ball and foresee his future back in April, before refusing a contract renewal with Liverpool.
City’s future lies in the hands of Pep Guardiola, who, like Klopp, is a manager fully engaged with getting the most out of talented prospects throughout his career.
The club’s present, though, depends on Pellegrini’s starlets – Sterling is among them.
It remains to be seen whether the youngster has what it takes to bounce back from all the criticism surrounding him and defend his decision to delineate his own fate away from Merseyside.
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