Michael Owen believes Raheem Sterling will be dropped for Mikel Merino after his ‘really poor performance’ in Arsenal’s 2-0 win over Leicester City on Saturday.
Both Sterling and Arsenal struggled to break down a well-organised Leicester side in Saturday’s early kick-off and the on-loan Chelsea winger was replaced by Mikel Merino just over the hour mark.
Merino then scored two late goals to secure Arsenal’s victory, which has moved Mikel Arteta’s side to four points behind Liverpool, who host Wolves at Anfield on Sunday.
Owen says he understands Sterling’s difficult period for Arsenal due to his lack of minutes this season but feels the 30-year-old will now lose his place in the team following Merino’s double.
‘The only thing I would say to back him up in a way is that when you don’t play regularly it really affects you, it affects your rhythm,’ Owen told Premier League Productions when asked about Sterling’s performance.
‘I remember towards the end of my career I was not playing a lot and then all of a sudden you get asked to start out of nowhere. There’s loads of injuries, all of a sudden he’s asked to start a game and you feel out of touch, you almost lose your bearings sometimes.
‘You could see he was almost tripping over himself at times, standing offside there’s no excuse for that, even when he’s 50 he should know how to time a run and how to look across a line.
‘I agree, it is sad to see him put in a really poor performance but the one thing I would say is it might be because he’s a little bit rusty.
‘Now he’s going to get the opportunity, probably off the bench again now because Merino’s going to take his place for the next game, it’s going to be an impact thing.
‘He’s got to grab these chances because at his age there isn’t many opportunities left, there’s going to be people coming in, coming back from injury, signings, this is his opportunity now with so many injured players to grasp it, you’ve only probably got six to ten games to do that.’
Meanwhile, Ian Wright believes Sterling showed ‘hesitancy’ and ‘apprehension’ during his 69 minutes on the pitch.
‘It’s a sad watch, it’s been a sad time to watch Raheem in this Arsenal period because of what he’s done, what he’s achieved,’ Wright told Premier League Productions.
‘To come to Arsenal at a time where it’s a great opportunity for him to show people he’s still got something left, for some reason unfortunately he can’t find the spark to get him going.
‘I think you saw it again today, there’s hesitancy in his game, there’s a little bit of apprehension, it just feels like it’s not quite happening for him and it’s sad to see.
‘The thing is as well, if it continues in the way we’re seeing him play at the moment, you think, ‘who are his suitors going to be after this?’.
‘This is a level he’s got to, even if it’s a loan, where you think if you prove it here Arsenal may keep you on, you may go again at this level.
‘But it’s very tough to see him at this level if it carries on like this.’
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