World Cup 2018: Why Raheem Sterling is better than Man Utd’s Marcus Rashford - Paul Merson
MANCHESTER CITY winger Raheem Sterling must start for England at this summer’s World Cup ahead of Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford.
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That is the opinion of Sky Sports pundit and former England striker Paul Merson.
Sterling and Rashford could be competing for one spot in Gareth Southgate’s side for their World Cup opener against Tunisia on Monday.
Rashford could be a slight doubt for the clash after picking up a knee injury in training yesterday.
But before hearing that news, Merson says he would pick Sterling ahead of the Manchester United man if he had to choose.
Sterling has to play for me. If Sterling doesn’t play - no chance
“I heard yesterday people saying about Sterling not playing,” Merson said on Sky Sports News.
“Sterling has to play for me. If Sterling doesn’t play - no chance.
“I’ve got both (in my starting XI) but if I had to pick one of them, I’d have to pick Sterling.”
Merson has gone one step further with Raheem Sterling and has surprisingly backed the 23-year-old to win the Golden Boot.
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“I’ve gone for Sterling as the top goalscorer,” he said.
“One, it’s a massive price, but two, he hasn’t scored since 2015 and people will be watching this thinking ‘is he mad? 18 caps without a goal’. (But) he gets chances.
“If he clicks and he hits fire, he could be the top goalscorer, there’s no doubt. He’s got to play every game.”
Sterling scored 23 goals for City last season, compared to Marcus Rashford's 13.