Jack Grealish blasts ‘stupid’ trolls over viral Raheem Sterling video mocking Feyenoord debut
Jack Grealish has jumped to the defence of his former Manchester City and England teammate Raheem Sterling after the winger faced brutal criticism following his Feyenoord debut.
The Everton loanee was furious when he spotted an Instagram post suggesting Sterling should consider hanging up his boots.
Grealish didn’t hold back in his response, writing: “What a f***ing stupid Instagram post man what’s wrong with you guys.
“Guy hasn’t played or trained for so long. People like you guys are what’s wrong with the world. Have some respect.”
Jack Grealish leapt to Raheem Sterling’s defence on social media
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The post from an account called FootballPark, which boasts nearly 100,000 followers, described Sterling as looking like “Bambi on ice” during his 30-minute cameo.
Sterling, 31, made his first appearance of the season when he came on as a substitute in Feyenoord’s 2-1 victory over Telstar on Sunday.
The former Chelsea forward replaced Gijs Smal in the 61st minute and spent the final half hour on the left wing.
It’s fair to say he looked rusty – his touch was off and he was outmuscled on a couple of occasions.
But that’s hardly surprising given the circumstances. The 82-cap England international had been training alone in west London for months after being frozen out at Chelsea.
Raheem Sterling made the shock move to Feyenoord earlier this month
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He’d gone nine months without competitive action at the highest level.
Robin van Persie wasn’t exactly shocked by Sterling’s quiet showing.
The Feyenoord boss explained that his new signing had only trained with the group for the first time last Tuesday – his first session with teammates in several months.
“In my opinion, he’s a player of exceptional quality,” Van Persie said. “He showed that in those training sessions. I enjoyed seeing that, and so did his teammates.”
But the former Arsenal and Manchester United striker made clear that patience is essential.
“He needs some time to be able to play 90 minutes. That won’t be Sunday and it won’t be next week either,” Van Persie added. “We’ll do it our way, as quickly as possible, but responsibly and calmly.”
Sterling himself seemed unfazed by the negativity, choosing to focus on the positives from his Dutch debut.
“Haven’t played in little bit, but just trying to keep fit,” he said after the match.
“Been with the team now for a little bit, so it’s just all on building a step at a time and trying to get to match fitness.”
The former Liverpool and City winger was pleased to kick off his Feyenoord career with three points.
Raheem Sterling made 81 appearances for Chelsea across all competitions | GETTY
“Good to start your first game with a win, think that’s the most important,” Sterling added.
“With the targets that we’re chasing, so a good debut.”
