Raheem Sterling has followed the likes of Romelu Lukaku and Benjamin Mendy by telling his life story to The Players’ Tribune.
The Players’ Tribune is a force for good, and Raheem Sterling needs it more than most players.
The Manchester City forward has attracted criticism for years from certain sections of the media, particularly The Sun, for having the temerity to be young, black and successful.
On Friday morning, his piece for The Players’ Tribune was released in which he writes about the murder of his father, having to stay in Jamaica while his mother went to study in England and growing up in the shadow of Wembley.
It’s an excellent piece.
“When I was two years old, my father was murdered,” he writes.
“That shaped my entire life. Not long after that, my mum made the decision to leave me and my sister in Jamaica and go to England so she could get her degree and give us a better life. For a few years, we lived with our grandmother in Kingston, and I remember watching the other kids with their mums and just feeling really jealous. I didn’t fully understand what my mum was doing for us. I just knew that she was gone. My grandma was amazing, but everybody wants their mum at that age.”
He has also written about the stories that frequently appear about him in the British press.
“There’s a perception in certain parts of the media that I love “bling.” I love diamonds. I love to show off. I really don’t understand where that comes from. Especially when I bought my mum a house, it was unbelievable what some people were writing. I think it’s really sad that people do that. They hate what they don’t even know.
“A few years ago, I would let it get to me. I’d be saying to my mum, “Why are they picking on me?”
“But now, as long as my mum and my sister and my kids don’t have any stress, I’m good.”
The full piece can be found here and we strongly recommend you take a few minutes to read it.
Needless to say, people are loving what the former Liverpool player has to say.
Fantastic piece by Raheem Sterling on his background via @PlayersTribune. His story is inspiring and as he says, it's sad that people hate what they don't even know. https://t.co/jD2G7tljJe
— Ben Lyttleton (@benlyt) June 22, 2018
Brilliant from @sterling7. The Players Tribune is on to something. https://t.co/FdFW86ZUk4
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) June 22, 2018
The Players’ Tribune is putting out some great stuff around the World Cup. How legendary is Sterling’s big sister by the way? https://t.co/hx0WnCpAqT
— Eoin McDevitt (@EoinMcDevitt) June 22, 2018
I don't know why it's taken so long for this sort of thing to emerge, whether players' agents never allowed them to be so open, or the media just weren't interested. Who knows, but this is great. Club rivalries aside, why wouldn't you be behind him?https://t.co/vc8jVq7VKX
— Sean (@shornKOOMINS) June 22, 2018
