31 August 2023 , 13:14
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Gareth Southgate has conceded that Raheem Sterling is "not particularly happy" about his omission from the latest England squad.
Sterling, 27, endured a difficult maiden season at Chelsea following his £50million transfer from Manchester City last summer and sat out this summer's European Championship qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia in June after talks with Southgate.
The versatile forward has made an impressive start to the new campaign with Chelsea and was hopeful of earning a recall to the national team. However, Southgate has not named Sterling in his the squad which will face Ukraine and Scotland next month - and the Chelsea ace has seemingly been left frustrated with the decision.
Speaking on Thursday, Southgate said of Sterling: "He was not available for the last two and that's given other people the opportunity to play well and establish themselves. It is a difficult call and Raheem is not particularly happy about it but I understand that."
Southgate added: "We were really pleased with the group and to bring Raheem back in, we would have to leave someone else out. I didn't think any of the attacking players from the last three games warranted being left out.
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"It is really good to see Raheem start the season so well, he looks hungry and in great condition and he is a really important player for us."
Join the debate! Do you think Sterling deserved an England recall? Let us know here.
Sterling's impressive early season form has not been enough to earn him an England recall (Nigel French/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images)In the wake of Sterling's indifferent 2022/23 campaign, other individuals, including the likes of Bukayo Saka and Marcus Rashford, have hit form and starred for England.
Sterling, though, has made an electric start to the season under new Chelsea head coach Mauricio Pochettino; he was influential in the Blues season opener against Liverpool and scored twice and bagged an assist in last week's 3-0 win over Luton Town.
Sterling's camp also reacted to the news by issuing a statement shortly after the squad had been announced. The statement said: "Raheem will revert to the coach for all comment but would like to reinforce that the decision has been respected. Raheem will continue to focus on his domestic form."
England will face Ukraine in a EURO 2024 qualifier before hosting Scotland at Wembley.