The £20m major West Ham transfer gamble that could see Chelsea flop become bargain of the summer window

Right now, it’s hard to picture Raheem Sterling’s next steps. Not so very long ago, he was one of the Premier League’s most destructive wingers – now, he’s a member of Chelsea’s infamous ‘bomb squad’, unwanted and marginalised, up for sale but with no exit imminent.

Given that he is unquestionably one of the best players the top flight has seen over the past decade and still only 30 years old, it’s fair to assume that a club will come in for him sooner rather than later – but where will he end up, and will the reality of a colossal contract with Chelsea seem him trapped at Stamford Bridge for another season?

Why Raheem Sterling’s contract makes it hard for him to find a transfer

There is no question that Chelsea want Sterling to leave, and it’s likely that the player is keen to move on as well – but the situation remains far from straightforward, and while alleged interest has been steadily growing, there is no evidence that a transfer is imminent.

The Athletic reported on Tuesday that an unnamed Champions League club are “keen to sign him” - that seems likely to be Bayer Leverkusen - there are significant financial impediments to getting a deal done, not the least of which being that Chelsea are reportedly demanding £20m, even for a player they have determined that they have no further use for.

Sterling’s contract makes things ever harder. The former England international still has two years remaining on a deal worth a massive £325,000 per week, which puts him well outside of the financial reach of many teams who might otherwise take an interest. Even when Arsenal took him on loan last season, they only paid 30% of his wages.

That may suggest that a second successive loan deal is easier to sort out than a permanent transfer, with few clubs likely to be willing to pay Sterling a salary similar to that which he is earning now. He may be willing to take a huge pay cut in order to secure first-team football, but few could sensibly blame him if he expected to be paid the enormous amounts he is contractually due.

A deal could be reached in which Chelsea pay some portion of his wages, but when you factor in the risk element for any buying team – that Sterling’s peak has passed permanently, and that he will never recapture his Manchester City form again – it certainly wouldn’t be surprising if there were no takers for a £20m fee and a long-term contract. The team taking that on would certainly have to be bold.

And so Sterling is stuck in limbo, too expensive for the move that his age and steadily declining form over the past three seasons suggests he needs. A team of Arsenal or Chelsea’s scope are unlikely to take a chance on him – so where might his next move come from, and could any Premier League teams make a move?

Could a team like West Ham give Sterling a chance?

There aren’t many European teams who are in a position where they could afford Sterling – even if they old paid him half of what he is earning now – and where they might feel that he could be reasonably expected to improve the sporting project based on what we have seen over the last year, in particular.

Sterling is struggling, and while that may yet prove to have been a temporary state of affairs, it may make suitors who believe in his undoubted talents wary of a major financial commitment. Leverkusen’s name has cropped up, as has Napoli’s, but these are rumours with nothing tangible behind them.

There are also a few teams in the Premier League who might be persuaded to give Sterling a second chance due to positional needs, his playing profile, and the hope (however faint it may seem) that he can recapture some of his effervescent best.

None of them will pay £325,000 per week and few of them would chance £20m, but one wonders how far Chelsea will be willing to go to recoup some costs should it become clear that they aren’t going to get as much as they want. Sterling may end up being very cheap, at least on the front end, and that may be why Fulham’s name cropped up on Friday, albeit not from the the most trustworthy outlets.

West Ham United seem like a candidate, too. Having sold Mohammed Kudus they look exceptionally thin up front, especially on the left, and could do with some of Sterling’s capacity to get in behind defences.

While the stats back up the eye test by suggesting that Sterling has declined in many respects, there are still areas in which he is well above the league’s averages – not least in his ability to find space to receive passes in the final third and to earn territory with the ball at his feet. He may not score or provide goals as often as he once did, but he gets into enough threatening positions that he could still be more than useful if he does regain some form.

Of course, for a side such as West Ham to involve themselves, there would have to be significant compromise on the finances. They have many needs in the transfer market which likely preclude a £20m offer, while their highest earners – Lucas Paquetá and Jarrod Bowen – earn £150,000 per week, less than half of Sterling.

But Sterling won’t go too far. ESPN have claimed that their sources suggest he has no interest in a move to Saudi Arabia or the United States and wants to stay close to the top level – and that he still wants to prove his worth and to find another high before the end of his career.

Maybe a side like West Ham - or Fulham - could offer him that opportunity. More likely not, but eventually someone will decide to take a chance that the old Sterling is still in there, and that three years on Chelsea’s books hasn’t beaten it out of him. There are few more fascinating players in the Premier League, and few who have done more to earn another roll of the dice.