Raheem Sterling

[Vermilion]

I don't what all the panic is all about....he said a little while back that he's waiting for his 18th birthday to sign a new contract.....let's wait until after then shall we before all the inquest's.

He did yes, then he did the equivalent of taking it back, by deleting the tweet.

Obviously we'll have to wait to know for sure, the discussion is more about how far the club should go to keep him, with other clubs waiting to pounce, and they are...we can all agree on that i think.

[Fivex]

Yes there is.

The National Minimum Wage is £3.68 per hour, but this will rise to £4.98 per hour once he hits 18.

https://www.gov.uk/national-minimum-wage-rates

And a bonus point for going to the trouble of getting a link.

[saj]

Tee-bag,

Now I see what you mean by Jordan Ibe! He looks lethal. He dribbles with the ball so close to his feet and at such pace as well

[souliv]

Why are we waiting on Sterling to turn 18 when Ibe just signed a professional contract today and is 17

[Vermilion]

Why are we waiting on Sterling to turn 18 when Ibe just signed a professional contract today and is 17

Good question.

Although, it's only Sterling that said that, and he very quickly back-tracked.

[JudgeRed]

Im sure I read somewhere, that FSGs plan was to try and recruit the worlds best young players, to develop and have success with them, and then sell on at a profit. I guess we ll now see if it was BS or not.

[McDermotX]

Why are we waiting on Sterling to turn 18 when Ibe just signed a professional contract today and is 17

I don't know where this 18yr old thing has come from. Professional contracts have been getting signed by promising players well before that.
I think the allowed age is closer to 15 (as long as the parents gives consent).
Under 18s can only sign for a max of three years though if I remember correctly.

Chances are there are some drawn out negotiations taking place, plus its entirely possible that he may want to move back closer to home (and be quids in at the same time). Very hard to know looking on the outside, but I suspect we've placed a pro contract under his nose a long time back, so draw your own conclusions from that.

[little dave hedgehog]

is there a maximum wage under 18 maybe?

[Daniel 7]

Jordan Ibe

Whatever, Raheem...

[McDermotX]

is there a maximum wage under 18 maybe?

There could very well be Dave............even so, there is obviously a negotiating tactic for younger players such as Sterling, where he is clearly in a better position to be demanding wages right now, than say a year back.
But even so, he'd still be limited to a 3 year deal......once he's over 18 he can sign for longer of course.

Looking at simply, a professional contract is the goal for any up and coming player, and yet this lad still hasn't signed one in all his time here.
Lump that into a few reasons why -
We haven't offered him one. (unlikely)
We haven't offered him one to his liking (or his agent's). (more likely)
He clearly figures he'd be 'worth more' once he broke into the first team (and England setup)......(self-confidence in his ability.....possible)
He wants to move away - either for monetary reasons, or location reasons. (not impossible).

[Slinky Skills]

I wouldn't worry, he's going to be with us for a long time.

[Daniel 7]

If he goes, he goes.

Whatever. He's only 17, he's hardly a massive loss as he is now. Sure the potential is there, but we have had better prospects than him.

[McDermotX]

I wouldn't worry, he's going to be with us for a long time.

If he goes, he goes.

Whatever. He's only 17, he's hardly a massive loss as he is now. Sure the potential is there, but we have had better prospects than him.

[Slinky Skills]

Has it crossed anyone's mind that he might just be a decent, hard working youngster and not a greedy **** like some of the others out there.

Seems a good lad and has his head firmly screwed on too. Takes a tackle no bother, just gets on with it. He is going to be a real player for us, as will Suso and Shelvey.

Three gems we have there. Haven't been as confident about some youngsters coming through in a long time.

[Daniel 7]

I haven't got a ****ing clue how anything works

My insider knowledge of young Premiership players with potential is limited to what my wife can tell me. She teaches at a school where they send some LFC academy players on the Wirral.

She has taught a few, including some that are due to come through in the next couple of years. The last biggish name she had was Tom Ince, who she said was one of the nicest, most down to earth kids she has taught. Polite, friendly, great student and hugely popular throughout the school. She met Mrs Ince, but never Paul on parents nights, and again she said she was a very grounded lady with an active interest in Tom's education. Totally at odds with the perception of the badly advised petulant, precocious kid he's portrayed to be on some forums.

James Frayne (David James's nephew) however.... less said the better.