Phil Neville Tips Sterling For Top Scorer Award

By Joshua Walters

Former Everton captain Phil Neville has tipped Manchester City's Raheem Sterling to win the 2018/19 Premier League top scorer award.

Sterling has been in terrific form for the Citizens and occupies the 6th spot on the scorers chart with three strikes less than leading scorer and teammate, Sergio Aguero, who has 18 goals.

The former Liverpool winger scored a hat-trick in his last Premier League game against Watford, and repeated the feat by striking thrice for England last Friday when the Three Lions thrashed Czech Republic 5-0 in the Group A clash of the Euro 2020 qualifiers.

Neville has been mesmerised by Sterling's recent goal run, and has picked the versatile forward to emerge as the finest target man of the league.

"Raheem Sterling could still win the Golden Boot because of the amount of chances that City get and he gets in particular.

"The composure around his finishing has become world-class. He's taking the extra touch, not smashing the ball but showing that composure in front of goal that all the best strikers and goal scorers have in the world."

Sterling has a chance to increase his tally in the coming week in Manchester City's back-to-back league games against relegation-threatened Fulham and Cardiff City.

Neville, who made his name playing for Manchester United, Everton and the England national team, further described Sterling as a 'matured world class player', adding that he would have dreaded facing a player like that in his career.

"What you're seeing now is a player who's matured, developed, and is truly, truly world-class," says Neville.

"As a defender he would be my worst nightmare: two-footed, unbelievable speed, the ability to go outside you, inside you, run in behind you without the ball and then the composure to finish at the end of a sweeping move.

"He's as good as anyone in the Premier League. A really, really impressive player and one I would absolutely hate playing against."