The England international was unveiled by Chelsea last week as their first major signing of the summer. The 27-year-old England international signed a five years contract with Chelsea. Raheem Sterling becomes the highest earner at Chelsea with a weekly wage of £325,000.
Raheem Sterling will wear the number 17 shirt at Chelsea. The jersey number has a lot of memory for Chelsea fans as it was the first shirt Eden Hazard wore at Chelsea when he arrived from Lile. The Blues fans will hope Raheem Sterling gives them the same level of excitement.
Sterling has already started impressing Thomas Tuchel following his debut against Charlotte Fc on Thursday.
What did Raheem Sterling say?
Speaking in his first interview with Chelsea media, The Chelsea new number 17 said: ” You can see how genuine he (Thomas Tuchel) was and how much he wanted me here, and that was the nail on it for me. I was certain that this is the place I want to be.
“I know a few of the boys from the national team. Mase, Chilly, to name a few, and I’ve got a good connection with Callum already. I feel at home already and I just keep putting the work in and can’t wait to gel even more with them.
“It’s been a great first week, I am really settling in, I feel at home now.
“I say to the fans, thank you for your warm welcome. It’s an exciting time for me.
“I know how much more I have to offer. I still feel within myself that there’s another step that I’ve been fighting to get on to and I think this is the perfect platform for me to do that.
“Hopefully I can do that in person at the Bridge for many years to come and just keep bagging their goals in, simple as that!”
Raheem Sterling also revealed that Chelsea’s winning mentality and their desire to challenge to compete for the Premier League next season also motivated him to join Chelsea.
The 27-year-old England international continued: “Seeing in the last two years it’s four or five finals that you guys have been in, the progress, you won the Champions League and are now looking to challenge for the Premier League, it’s something that intrigued me when I was having a conversation with the club.
“Seeing the direction that you guys are going in, it’s something I really bought into and I just felt it is a place where I can really come into my own. I just think it’s the perfect platform for me.
“The club’s already got that winning mentality,’ he added, ‘but to keep doing it every single year and keep winning more and more trophies and building on the previous season, I think that’s what top managers like Thomas [Tuchel] do. It’s not one year win and next year rest, it’s again and again and again and that’s what excites me to be here.”
Raheem Sterling will be hoping to score his first goal for Chelsea when they meet Arsenal on Saturday in the Florida Cup final.