Paul Merson tips Leeds United to sign forgotten Chelsea star ahead of Arsenal in shock transfer

Paul Merson has urged Leeds United to sign Raheem Sterling in the summer transfer window. The 30-year-old winger faces an uncertain future at Chelsea, having .

Sterling, who sees his contract at Stamford Bridge expire in June 2027, has featured 26 times across all competitions, scoring one goal and providing five assists. Playing a limited role in Mikel Arteta's side, .

Despite injuries to numerous forwards, the England international has still been unable to nail down a regular spot in the starting line-up. The Arsenal boss has shown no indication that he wants to sign Sterling permanently, .

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So, in an effort to revive his career, Merson has urged Leeds, , to sign him in the summer. Speaking on , the former Gunners midfielder said: "If I was Leeds United, I’d be looking at Raheem.

"They’re a young team. They like to play attacking football. . He’s got all the experience in the world, he’s won Premier Leagues.

"For me, that wouldn’t be a bad move for Leeds or for Sterling. He’d be going to a massive, huge club, and the expectations are not as high. If they finish 17th in the Premier League next year, they’ve pulled up trees. ."

In February, Arteta demanded more from Sterling after a disappointing start to the season. The Chelsea loanee had scored just once in 19 games for the Gunners, finding the net against Bolton in the third round of the Carabao Cup.

Speaking to reporters, the Arsenal boss said: "He has to have it because we really need him. Raheem is so experienced, and like many other players, we know that what you did yesterday is not whether it was really good or not.

"That could be relevant to the next game, to the next action. He's fully focused, he's trained really well this week, and he is ready to go again."

When asked if Sterling was lacking confidence, Arteta replied: "Hopefully not, because we try to give him as much as possible, but that's a question for him. We are all behind him.

"We want the best for him and and it is important that we need his best. We need players only with that mindset, to impact the team. He is doing everything that he possibly can to make it work."

Despite Arteta's call to arms, Sterling still only has one goal to his name for the Gunners. Ironically, when the winger joined Arsenal in the final hours of the summer transfer window, he claimed: "People like to talk, don't they? Well, so do I. And I'll say this: You are about to see the best of me."

As quoted by the , Sterling later added: "It's an unbelievable feeling. It's really exciting. It [the move] is one where we kind of left it late, but it's one I was hoping for. Looking at everything, I'm just, like, 'this is a perfect fit for me', and I'm super happy that we got it over the line."