RAHEEM STERLING REJECTS NAPOLI TO PUSH FOR FULHAM TRANSFER
Raheem Sterling rejects Napoli's offer to stay in London. Discover why Fulham is the favourite to end his Chelsea exile this January.
Raheem Sterling looks set to stay in the Premier League, maybe even with a rival, and he’s not interested in joining Italian champions Napoli. The Chelsea winger barely features at Stamford Bridge these days, and honestly, he just wants to stay in London for personal reasons. Fulham stands out as the club he likes most.
Sterling Stays Close to Home, Ignores Napoli
Napoli wants him, sure. With Antonio Conte, his old Chelsea boss, now in charge, they see the 31-year-old as a big boost for their attack. Napoli sits third in Serie A and wants experienced players as they chase Inter and try to defend last season’s title.
But Sterling isn’t tempted. For him, keeping his family settled in the UK means more than chasing trophies in Italy. He’s worn the England shirt 82 times, but right now, he’s not interested in uprooting his life. Sky Sports says he’s determined to stay in London.
Fulham makes the most sense. If he moves there, he barely has to change anything — the training ground is close, and he can stay in his current home. West Ham looked at him, too, but Fulham is his best shot to escape his Chelsea nightmare and stay put in London.
Money Stalls the Move
Sterling knows what he wants, but making it happen isn’t easy. The main headache for Fulham, West Ham, or any club in Europe is his huge pay packet — about £325,000 a week at Chelsea, way out of reach for most teams.
He also insists on a permanent deal. After a forgettable loan at Arsenal last season, he’s over temporary moves. He wants something long-term. But clubs hesitate to hand a big contract and wages to a 31-year-old who hasn’t played much.
Chelsea would love to move him on, just to get his salary off their books — he’s tied down until 2027. To make a Fulham move work, Sterling might have to accept a pay cut, or Chelsea will need to cover part of his wages.
Rosenior Moves On
With Liam Rosenior now managing Chelsea, some thought Sterling might get a fresh start. Rosenior said all the right things, but in reality, Sterling’s not getting back in the squad. He’s been training by himself for months, and he hasn’t played since May 2024.
Rosenior says he’ll talk to Sterling, but honestly, he’s focused on the players he has. Chelsea’s got a packed schedule, and Sterling isn’t part of those plans.
Career on Pause
It’s a rough patch for a guy who used to be vital for Manchester City and England. He’s not played much, and his career has been on ice for almost a year. That lack of game time hurts his value, and clubs know it.
The January window closes soon, so time’s running out. Chelsea faces Pafos in the Champions League on Wednesday — Rosenior’s fourth game in a fourth different competition. While the rest of the squad gets ready, Sterling waits and hopes Fulham, or maybe another London club, steps in before it’s too late. If nothing happens, he’ll keep training alone, which doesn’t help him or Chelsea at all.
AWONIYI DOUBLE LEAVES NOTTINGHAM FOREST ON THE VERGE OF PREMIER LEAGUE SAFETY
Nottingham Forest moved closer to safety with a 3-1 win over Chelsea, while West Ham fell into the relegation zone after Spurs won.
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Nottingham Forest came out of the weekend looking pretty safe after pulling off an impressive 3-1 win at Chelsea. They’re almost clear of the relegation mess. Tottenham’s big away win at Aston Villa shook things up too, and now West Ham are back in the bottom three, running out of time faster than ever.
Forest have stepped up just when they needed to, leaving West Ham and Tottenham behind with a string of solid performances. Honestly, no one saw this coming, especially since Vitor Pereira shuffled his lineup with eight changes, fresh off a Europa League win against Aston Villa.
Even so, Forest were ahead within 90 seconds, thanks to Taiwo Awoniyi’s quick strike. By the 15th minute, Igor Jesus calmly buried a penalty after Malo Gusto’s reckless foul in the box. Chelsea had a chance to get back in it, but Cole Palmer wasted a penalty right before the break after a scary head collision involving Jesse Derry.
Awoniyi doubled down and scored again early in the second half, pushing Forest six points ahead of West Ham with just three games left.
West Ham’s weekend started badly; they looked flat and lost to Brentford. Things got worse Sunday night when Tottenham pulled off their first back-to-back Premier League wins since August 2025, beating a heavily rotated Aston Villa side 2-1.
Forest is now out of West Ham’s reach, or almost. Tottenham’s still close enough for Nuno Espirito Santo’s team to worry, but with three tough games coming up, Spurs could stay up even without another win, unless West Ham digs deep and pulls off something unexpected before their home finale against Leeds.
Right now, Forest can practically taste safety. Spurs finally see a way out after weeks of struggle. As for West Ham, they’re left hoping for a miracle, a last-minute twist to dodge the drop.
CESC FABREGAS CONFIRMS INTEREST IN PREMIER LEAGUE RETURN AMID CHELSEA'S MANAGER SEARCH
As Chelsea searches for a new manager, Cesc Fabregas breaks his silence on his future at Como and his Premier League ambitions.
Cesc Fabregas recalls exactly how a conversation with Jose Mourinho prompted him to join Chelsea, despite having the opportunity to return to Arsenal.
After winning six trophies in just three seasons, the Spanish World Cup winner left Barcelona for the second time in 2014. That summer, Fabregas made a move back to the Premier League, signing with Chelsea for about €33 million.
He already knew English football well. Fabregas had arrived at Arsenal as a 16-year-old from Barcelona in 2003 and made 212 Premier League appearances for them. When he decided to leave Barcelona, Manchester City also wanted him, but Chelsea convinced him, mostly thanks to Mourinho.
Talking with talkSPORT’s Rory Jennings on YouTube, Fabregas laid out how it all happened. “Honestly, when I made up my mind to leave Barcelona, my first thought was just to go back to Arsenal. They had this buyback clause; they had two weeks to use it after I told them I was leaving. They knew about it but didn’t take it. That surprised me a little, but in the end, I had to think about my career. I was 27, at the peak of my career, and I wanted to continue performing and winning trophies. City and Chelsea were both options.
“But when Mourinho spoke to me, that was it. He showed me his plans for the team and told me about Diego Costa, Courtois, and Filipe Luis and how, with those guys, we’d win the league. He was right, by the way. We won both the Premier League and the Carling Cup.”
Fabregas wasted no time winning over Chelsea fans. On his debut at Burnley, he set up two goals, including a stunning assist for Andre Schurrle. He finished his first season at Chelsea with five goals and 24 assists, along with Premier League and League Cup medals.
Things dipped the next season. Fabregas got just 15 goal contributions, and Chelsea slipped all the way to tenth. But when Antonio Conte took charge in 2016-17, they bounced back, and Fabregas picked up another league title.
He added an FA Cup win in 2018, his second, after his earlier one with Arsenal, and left for Monaco a few months later. His last Chelsea match came in the FA Cup against Nottingham Forest. When he got subbed off, he couldn’t hold back tears.
Chelsea supporters still sing about him; that “Oh, Fabregas is magic...” chant sticks around. And with his name in the conversation for a possible return, maybe they haven’t seen the last of him yet.
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