Chelsea will pay player £10m to play for Arsenal

Chelsea will pay Raheem Sterling around £10m to play for Arsenal on loan this season, according to a report.

James Olley reports for ESPN that Arsenal are paying such a small proportion of Raheem Sterling’s £325,000-a-week Chelsea wages that his parent club will have to pay him around £10m over the course of his season in north London.

Olley suggests that it was only when Chelsea made it clear that they would pay the majority of Sterling’s wages that Arsenal decided to go for the deal.

The Gunners are also paying no loan fee for Sterling’s move.

The reason Chelsea were paying Sterling so much to begin with was due to their own incompetence, with ESPN reporting that they failed to include a standard reduction clause to bring down his wages if they failed to qualify for the Champions League.

All the same, Sterling was reportedly shocked when Enzo Maresca told him he wasn’t a key part of his plans, and he initially pushed for a permanent transfer.

The winger then turned down Chelsea’s favoured option of a move to the Saudi Pro League, eventually leading to Chelsea’s decision to allow a loan to Arsenal.

Sterling has been handed the number 30 shirt at Arsenal, and he’s pushing to get up to speed over the international break so he’s ready to face Tottenham Hotspur on September 15th.

The England international hasn’t been called up by his country for the current break, so he has a couple of weeks to work with Mikel Arteta ahead of the match.

Sterling has 13 career goals and assists against Arsenal’s north London rivals, and it would be the perfect introduction to his new club if he could add another next weekend.