Former Liverpool star admits he ‘didn’t like’ Raheem Sterling | Football

Ex-Liverpool star Dirk Kuyt says he ‘didn’t like’ Raheem Sterling but hopes to see the forward resurrect his profession at Feyenoord under Robin van Persie.

Sterling joined Feyenoord on a short-term deal until the top of the season in January having reached an agreement to terminate his contract with Chelsea.

It comes after Sterling didn’t make a single appearance for the Blues in the primary half of the campaign, with the 31-year-old forced to coach alone and effectively frozen out of the first-team following three-and-a-half underwhelming years at Stamford Bridge.

The attacker’s last game of senior football got here back in May 2025, when played an hour of Arsenal in a 2-1 win over Southampton while on loan with Mikel Arteta’s side.

It represents a remarkable fall from grace for a player once thought to be one among England’s finest with a complete of 11 pieces of silverware to point out for his undoubted talent, including 4 Premier League titles.

Sterling was pictured watching on from the stands today as Feyenoord ran out 1-0 victors over the struggling Go Ahead Eagles to revive their three-point over third-placed Ajax within the Eredivisie table.

In accordance with talkSPORT, the England international remains to be waiting to receive his work permit, meaning he’s currently prohibited from training or playing alongside his latest team-mates.

One player who knows what it takes to succeed at Feyenoord is Kuyt, who represented the club across two spells either side of his six-year stint on Merseyside with Premier League giants Liverpool.

Asked what he remembers from his time twiddling with Sterling at Liverpool, Kuyt told ESPN: ‘That was quite a couple of years ago. He was aged 16 then.

‘We trained together a couple of times and played a couple of matches. Ultimately, I didn’t like him that much because he quickly moved to a giant rival [Manchester City].

‘But Raheem Sterling is, after all, considered a improbable player in English football with an amazing record.’

Asked if he was surprised by Sterling’s January move to Rotterdam, Kuyt replied: ‘No, because on the earth of football you will have to expect every little thing, even the unexpected.

‘It’s improbable for Feyenoord that such a player is coming to the Netherlands.

‘We saw that with Jordan Henderson at our rivals Ajax.

Despite his previous dislike of Sterling, Kuyt is hoping to see his former team-mate return to his best within the Netherlands.

‘I hope he shows his best,’ Kuyt added.

‘He hasn’t played for some time, but I all the time say: you never lose certain qualities.

‘If his fitness is okay, and I assume it’s, then I’m looking forward to watching Feyenoord ‘s matches.

‘I watch all of them, and now with much more interest.’

In his first interview as a Feyenoord player, Sterling revealed how a frank conversation with head coach Van Persie left him with a ‘superb feeling’ a few move to the Netherlands.

‘When someone like Robin desires to speak to you, I believe you usually should answer that phone call,’ the ex-Manchester City and Liverpool man told the club’s official website.

‘It’s just having dialogue with one another and having a sense off one another, understanding what one another needs.

‘That dialogue began initially and I could feel what person Robin and how much football club that is.

‘After that, for me it becomes easy. For me, it’s not a really hard decision.

‘Football is about feelings and I believe I just had a superb feeling.’

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