Raheem Sterling wins Premier League Player of the Month
By Manchester City winger Raheem Sterling has been named the Premier League Player of the Month for November. Sterling has been in the headlines in the last few days after falling victim to alleged racist abuse during City’s first defeat of the season, against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
Playing the role of activist while striving to help the team win on the pitch at a time when injuries are threatening to wreak havoc in the squad is no mean feat. But the award serves as a much-needed tension reliever.
The 24-year-old wins the award after scoring three goals and providing three assists in three games in the month of November. He has been one of City’s best players this season always putting in a good shift for the Sky Blues when called upon. He started on a flying note netting in the first league game of the campaign against Arsenal.
He has continued with the rich vein of form that helped City secure 13 wins and two draws from the first 15 league games of the season. The fact that he has scored the same number of league goals this term as striker Sergio Aguero speaks to his improvement as a player and growing importance to the team.
He saw off competition for the prize from six other players. These include teammates David Silva and Leroy Sane as well as West Ham’s Felipe Anderson and Everton’s Lucas Digne. Tottenham’s Moussa Sissoko and Andrew Robertson of Liverpool complete the list.
The win makes it the second time Sterling is winning the award having first won it in August 2016. It’s a well-deserved award and one can only hope he continues with the form that has seen his contributions help City do very well early on in the quest to retain the title.
It also comes at a good time as it will provide an air of positivity around the player and indeed the whole team following recent negative events.
The spade of injuries in the team makes the England international even more important to Guardiola heading into the busy holiday period.
After succumbing to the first loss of the campaign to Chelsea, the Sky Blues will need to bounce back to winning ways against Hoffenheim in the Champions League this night as well as Everton in the league come this weekend. Sterling will likely play a huge role in that to help the team finish top of the table in Europe, and also reclaim top PL spot from Liverpool in the long run.