Arsenal: Raheem Sterling move would prove that nothing was learned

Arsenal appear to have been offered Raheem Sterling as part of Alexis Sanchez deal, but to accept would be to shun what was learned in the past.

Arsenal’s talks with Manchester City over the potential sale of Alexis Sanchez are now taking all sorts of twists and turns. First, it was said that the Gunners wanted Sergio Aguero as part of the exchange and now, City have supposedly countered with a different player.

Raheem Sterling.

Initially, I wrote it off, because surely we’d have learned our lesson, but there is a good deal of steam behind this potential move and Gooners seem pretty supportive of the idea, so I just want to get this on record and say that this is a horrible, terrible, rotten, no good, bogus, ridiculous, ill-advised, destructive idea.

For one reason: Gervinho.

Gervinho had two ill-fated years at Arsenal and showed us two things. 1. That he could use his speed and dribbling ability to get through anything. He could have gotten through the Great Wall easier than Genghis Khan did.

2. That, once he navigated through the defense, he would absolutely crap himself, forget where he was, and fluff his lines.

Gervinho didn’t know how to finish and neither does Raheem Sterling.

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Here’s some fun numbers for you. In two years at Arsenal, Gervinho totaled 11 goals and 12 assists in the Premier League and Champions League in 3417 combined minutes. He never came close to what he had done at Lille in the years before.

Raheem Sterling totaled 18 goals and 13 assists in his first two years at City in 5600 minutes of play across the Premier League and Champions League.

Don’t bother pulling out your calculators, because I’m already on it. Gervinho contributed to a goal every 148 minutes and Sterling? Every 180 minutes.

You can say that Sterling is younger and has all this potential, but that’s been the cry since he was 18. Plus, Gervinho was only 24 when he arrived in North London. Sterling is currently 22. It’s not like they are that far off.

And besides, Gervinho produced better than Sterling and I’d reckon Sterling won’t be at Gervinho’s production clip until he is… oh, let’s say 24.

Arsenal has an abundance of fleet-footed players who can’t deliver a final product to save their lives. Danny Welbeck. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (for a few more days, anyway). Theo Walcott, even. Why would we want another?

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They say that those who don’t know their history are doomed to repeat it. We need to show that we know our history – and our present – and stay the hell away from Gervinho 2.0 under the guise of Raheem Sterling.

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