Chelsea travel to face Bournemouth on September 17th in a game that they'll view as must win. Their new, expensively assembled squad will have eyes on at least Champions League qualification – beating lower Premier League sides should be fairly standard.
Of course, having so many new players – especially young ones – means a lack of experience in the squad. That's particularly noticeable up front, where Raheem Sterling is really their only forward player with plenty of Premier League success.
So what is his personal record against Bournemouth, then? We at Football FanCast have had a dip into the data to have a look and see what we can expect from him when the Blues face the Cherries.
What is Raheem Sterling's goals record vs Bournemouth?
Sterling has faced Bournemouth for every year they've been a Premier League side – and has only missed one fixture since. That came in 2016 during the Cherries' first top-flight season as he missed the second fixture through a groin injury.
His history with them actually starts a little before that, though. There were six minutes in an FA Cup game for Liverpool back in 2014, and a start for the Reds in the EFL Cup the following year. The latter brought his first goals against Bournemouth – a brace in a 3-1 win.
And when he was played, Sterling has shone. His very first Premier League game against Bournemouth saw him bag a hat trick and started a run of six consecutive meetings where he scored.
As a result, Sterling's record against Bournemouth is fantastic. He's faced them 14 times across his career, scoring 11 times. This is his third-best record against any opponent, with only Watford and Norwich struggling more.
What is Raheem Sterling's assists record vs Bournemouth?
Sterling hasn't picked up assists against Bournemouth at quite the same rate. Still, he has several to his name, particularly after the season just finished.
In all, there have been four. The first came in 2016 for Manchester City and another followed in 2018. He's already matched that total with Chelsea, though, as Sterling assisted in both fixtures in the last campaign.
Four assists in 14 games, then. Along with 11 goals, it's an incredible record from the England star.
How many goal contributions does Raheem Sterling have vs Bournemouth?
It's 11 goals and four assists across 14 fixtures in all competitions. He's contributed for three different clubs, too, with two goals for Liverpool, nine goals and two assists for Man City, and another two assists for Chelsea.
In other words, Bournemouth really struggle to handle Sterling – no matter who he's playing for. He finds a way to contribute against them and has been doing so for around a decade now.
What is Raheem Sterling's head-to-head record vs Bournemouth?
Sterling has played for Liverpool, Man City and Chelsea, so you'd imagine his record is pretty fantastic against a team like Bournemouth. But it's actually even better than you'd think.
In 14 meetings, Sterling has never lost to Bournemouth. He's also never drawn with them – in other words, his side has won on literally every occasion. It's difficult to boast a better record than that and we can't imagine many players in the Premier League could match that against any opponent.
14 wins in 14 games across three competitions, for three different clubs. It feels safe to expect another when Chelsea visit Bournemouth this season.
Who has Raheem Sterling scored the most goals against?
Sterling hasn't scored against anyone more than the 11 he has against Bournemouth. But given they came in 14 games, it's not actually his most notable opponent.
That would be Watford. Sterling also has 11 goals against them but they came in just 10 matches. The fact he's also managed two assists in that span just makes it even more remarkable and few players boast a record that good against anyone.
In terms of just overall goal contributions, though, Bournemouth have suffered the most. Sterling's 11 goals and four assists combined for 15 contributions in 14 games. That's the most of any opponent in his career and you can likely expect more to come.
How many goals does Raheem Sterling have in September?
September has been a very good month for Sterling. He's bagged 21 goals in the month since the start of his career, for all three clubs and England.
His first came all the way back in 2014 as he scored against West Ham for Liverpool. Since then, he's picked up at least one September goal every single year – most years he finds multiple.
Of course, Sterling struggled in front of goal for Chelsea last season. He did manage to find one September goal, though, as he scored against RB Salzburg in the UEFA Champions League. The forward would only score once more for the Blues until January.
How many goals does Sterling have for Chelsea?
Unfortunately few, given his £50m price-tag. Sterling has just nine goals since moving to Chelsea, with three of those coming in the Champions League last season against RB Salzburg, Dinamo Zagreb and Borussia Dortmund.
In the Premier League, things arguably look even worse than 'six goals all season' sounds. Sterling scored three times in August last year but wouldn't find another league goal until January and then didn't score again until May.
But it's the nature of the goals that's worrying. The August three came as a brace against relegated Leicester City and a single strike against relegated Southampton. All three post-New Year were in two fixtures against Nottingham Forest.
So Sterling only actually scored against three Premier League teams last season, two of which were relegated and the other battled relegation.
What is Raheem Sterling's Premier League goal record?
Sterling hasn't been the most prolific goalscorer in the Premier League but his longevity has him high on the all-time scorers list. In total, the forward has 115 Premier League goals.
That's two more than Ian Wright and good enough for 22nd all-time in the competition. In fact, Sterling only needs to match his small haul of last season in order to move into the top 20. He'll hope to do better than that, of course, but it just goes to show how long the player has been going for.
As for assists, Sterling is now 23rd on the all-time Premier League list with 59. Mohamed Salah knocked him down a spot with his assist against Chelsea on the opening day – so Sterling could move back up there quickly.
In fact, the seven players above Sterling – Salah aside – are all out of the Premier League now. There's potential for him to shoot up the rankings at quite a pace if he finds his creative boots this season.
What is Chelsea's record against Bournemouth?
Chelsea vs Bournemouth isn't exactly the most common fixture in football. It's only happened on 19 occasions, with the vast majority since 2015. Before that, there were a couple of League Cup meetings in 1994, two Division two games in 1988 and one fixture in the short-lived Full Members' Cup in 1989.
Of course, the Premier League history since 2015 is the most relevant stuff here – and Chelsea do have the better record there. But not by as much as you'd likely think.
There have been 12 Premier League meetings and Chelsea have won seven of them. Bournemouth have four wins of their own, however, with one game finishing in a draw.
Notably, the two wins last season were Chelsea's first after failing to win either of the previous three. It's also interesting to note that the two biggest wins in the history of this fixture are for Bournemouth – 4-0 at home in 2019 and 3-0 away in 2018 (Chelsea do also have a 3-0 win at home in 2016, though).
This certainly isn't one that always goes Chelsea's way, then. But with Raheem Sterling and his perfect record in the squad, perhaps they've found a way around that.
When is Chelsea vs Bournemouth?
Bournemouth host Chelsea on Sunday, September 17th at 14:00 UK time. It's a game that will give everyone a good idea of where these two teams stand this season.
Bournemouth, of course, go into this one with few expectations. A defeat is pretty much expected after losing both fixtures last season and another here would essentially confirm them as a lower-table Premier League side.
Chelsea are a little different. Their enormous overhaul over the last couple of transfer windows makes their entire squad one big question mark. No one knows what to expect – with a near-£1bn spend, you'd expect a title challenge but few would put them in that bracket. A top-four finish feels like a must but their squad far from guarantees that.
And after finishing 12th last season, should they simply count a higher finish as progress? Or would that be a gigantic underperformance?
It's really unclear but this game with Bournemouth could give us an idea. Lose and you're looking at midtable again. Win with conviction and perhaps Chelsea could threaten at the top of the Premier League table – if they find consistency.