Gareth Southgate explains how Raheem Sterling can earn England recall

England manager Gareth Southgate has told Raheem Sterling that he simply needs to "play well" for Chelsea to earn his way back into the international setup.

Sterling was a firm favourite of Southgate's heading into the 2022 World Cup but has not played for his country since, having struggled for form since joining Chelsea that summer, and was once again left out when the England boss named his squad for the March international break.

Southgate insisted he is blessed with an excess of options in attack and acknowledged he simply does not have space to include Sterling at this point.

"We have to say at the moment at Chelsea, Cole [Palmer] is the one that is starting every game and they are leaving on," Southgate said. "With the form of Anthony Gordon, with the goals [Jarrod] Bowen has scored, he has got a fight on his hands. We know what Bukayo [Saka] and Phil [Foden] have done over a long period of time.

"It's like I have said over the past few selections, it's the area of the pitch where we have the highest level of competition for places. We'll never close the door because we know he can perform in our environment in the games that really matter, but at the moment we see him behind those guys.

"I know we've always tried to balance who can do the job for us, loyalty, but I do believe over time we've given opportunity to form as well and we're doing that again with Gordon. Bowen was in the last two squads anyway. [Jarrad] Branthwaite is a little bit different because we have problems at the back and even if it's not for this summer, we can invest some time in him. With Raheem, he's just got to play well for Chelsea."

Chelsea head coach Mauricio Pochettino pledged his support for Sterling, vowing to help the 29-year-old fight his way back into the England squad.

"It's difficult to talk because what am I going to tell him? All we can do is support him and try to help him to perform here. It is not our decision," Pochettino told The Athletic.

"Of course he needs to perform well to convince Gareth but what I tell him is no consolation, [nothing I can say] can make him happy. Nothing. Football is like this."

Sterling had a hot start to life under Pochettino but has seen his form tumble in recent months. He currently sits on six goals from 25 Premier League appearances this season, matching his goal tally from last year as well.

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