“Name me After Shaquille O’Neal” – England Superstar Raheem Sterling Discloses The Bizarre Details Behind His Middle Name

Raheem Sterling is an English forward who has represented his country in the World Cup. Sterling has a total of 20 goals in his name for the English team internationally over a 10-year-long career. He missed the round of 16 matches because he went back to his home in the middle of the tournament. However, he has an interesting story regarding his middle name- ‘Shaquille’. Once, he talked about the story of his middle name in an interview.

Sterling had an interview in Feb 2020 in which he talked about various aspects of his personal and professional career. He used to play with Manchester United at that time, before transferring to Chelsea in 2022. 

Raheem Sterling talking about his personal life

While reminiscing about the origin of his middle name, he opened up about how his middle name happened to be a tribute to the NBA legend Shaquille O”Neal. Sterling said, “When my mum was naming me, my grandma tried to name me after Shaquille O’Neal. My grandma lived in America and she wanted to name me after him.” 

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Sterling also talked about the hardship of life he had to go through when his father was murdered in Jamaica when he was just two years old. He said, ” Yeah, it was always a tough memory but at the same time it is something that I can always go back to and it motivates me to keep pushing and keep striving for the best.. Your mum gives you the full understanding of what happened and then you understand how hard it must have been at the time for her and my brothers and sister.”

Sterling had to leave the tournament midway

Raheem Sterling had left the tournament mid-way when his family was attacked by armed robbers in his house back in England. While discussing the matter with the press after England vs Senegal, England’s manager Southgate informed that it is unclear if Sterling will return.

He also specified that they don’t want to put any pressure on Sterling. He implied that Sterling could take as much time as he needs. Any details about the attack and robbery are yet to be made public, but along with his team, fans are also praying for his family’s well-being. 

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England is doing well in this world Cup and will face France in their next match. The quarterfinals are a tough test for the English team. What will come of it? Only time can tell.