3 reasons for Sterling's miss of 2023 against Wolves - none looks good

Raheem Sterling had one of the most glaring misses of the season in Chelsea's 2-1 defeat to Wolves on Sunday. What was worse than the miss itself, was his decision-making in that moment. 

With Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson both lined up next to him to score a simple tap-in, Sterling refused them the opportunity

The image makes for pretty grim viewing for Chelsea fans as they would have taken the lead, had Sterling chosen to pass.

The Athletic's Liam Twomey, noted in his review of the game, that there could have been three reasons for Sterling opting to go for the shot himself. All three are concerning for Chelsea fans. The first reason would be that Sterling did not recognise the right decision in a situation like that. 

A player who has played at the level Sterling has would decide to pass 99 out of 100 times. This is cause for concern. The second reason would be that Sterling ignored the pass options wilfully. 

This means the desperation to stand out with a goal would likely be higher than that of wanting to the team to get the three points. The third reason Twomey speculates is that he does not trust his teammates to convert a tap-in as simple as that. 

 All three reasons for Sterling not passing the ball there are reason enough to be taken off the field immediately. Shockingly, Pochettino didn't do it, even though he had Nkunku waiting in the wings