Raheem Sterling departs the England World Cup team following a break-in at a London residence.

SOCCER NEWS

After his family’s home was broken into, Raheem Sterling left the England World Cup team and returned to London.

Following the break the night before, Sterling did not participate in Sunday’s 3-0 victory over Senegal in the round of 16. According to Surrey Police, no one had been home when jewelry and watches were taken. The police stated, “We are currently looking into a report of a burglary at an address in Oxshott, Leatherhead.”

“When the property’s residents returned home, they found a lot of things had been stolen, including jewelry and watches. The inquiry is still ongoing, and inquiries are being made to determine the circumstances. Since the things were found to have been stolen after the fact, there was no fear of violence.” Earlier reports said that armed men had invaded a property that was occupied and threatened violence, but this statement suggests that was not the case.

The question of whether Chelsea forward Raheem Sterling would be ready for Saturday’s quarterfinal match against France was left unanswered by England manager Gareth Southgate. Sterling has been a key player for England over the past eight years and started both of England’s World Cup group stage matches against Iran and the United States. Additionally, he started each of England’s seven games during Euro 2020.

“I don’t want to put any pressure on him because it’s a situation that he needs time to cope with, Southgate said. Family should always come first and football shouldn’t always be the top priority.”

The second England player to go for personal reasons is Sterling. Ben White, a defender for Arsenal, left on November 30 and is not anticipated to come back.