Raheem Sterling was never afraid to speak up if something was wrong, says QPR’s former head of recruitment

Raheem Sterling’s brave decision to speak out about the treatment of black footballers has impressed many, but it comes as no surprise to the man who helped kickstart his career.

When Sterling took to his Instagram account to voice his concerns, the winger did not just write about being on the receiving end of vicious abuse at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

The main thrust of his piece was about how young black players are portrayed differently in the media to their white counterparts. Considering the number of negative headlines he has attracted in some quarters, it was a courageous step.

This was an unselfish act by a 24-year-old who is becoming a national role model. However, the England star’s actions are no surprise to Joe Gallen, QPR’s former head of recruitment. He saw this side of Sterling’s character when the winger was just 13.

Gallen handed Sterling a five-year deal after watching him in just one trial game. It is the only time in his entire career he has given such a long contract to a schoolboy. Two years later, Sterling approached Gallen about something he saw was not right at the club.

The 46-year-old, who is now assistant manager at Portsmouth, explained to Standard Sport: “Raheem didn’t think the coach of one of his teams was up to a certain level. I remember asking him about it and he told me, in a good way, that he didn’t feel the coach was at the standard he should have been.

“I actually started to observe the coach a bit and Raheem was 100 per cent right. I remember acting on it and had to remove the coach in question.

“I was a bit taken aback when it was first raised, but Raheem’s judgment was right. If he hadn’t been, I wouldn’t have done anything about it.

“I thought at the time that this is a kid who knew his own mind, was calm and spoke in a considered way.”

Inevitably, those with a cynical view of footballers may imagine this was the act of a cocky teenager who was getting too big for his boots.

Far from it, says Gallen. “He did it for the betterment of all the players,” he said. “There is nothing wrong with speaking up if you do it in a certain tone. And if you’re correct, there is nothing wrong with doing so, is there?

“Back then, he was a great kid who just loved football and enjoyed the company of other players.

“He would never say too much those days, but once he did speak, I always thought it was pretty considered — it wasn’t off the cuff — and it was something he’d given a lot of thought to.

“I’m pretty sure that’s what he’s doing now, that’s what it seems like to me. I don’t think Raheem’s changed that much. Once he had something to say, he was always confident enough to speak up and make sense.”

Still, it should not be underestimated just how far Sterling has come.

Gary Neville revealed on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football that the Manchester City star had approached him during Euro 2016 for help in how to deal with the abuse he was getting from fans and criticism in newspapers.

You could argue little has changed for Sterling since then, but now he is the one acting as a mentor to others.

John Barnes, who suffered racist abuse during his career, respects what Sterling is trying to achieve.

“I have been very proud of him,” he said. “In terms of his reaction over everything that has come his way, he has handled it with maturity, he has handled it with intelligence.

“His highlighting of how the media’s perception of young black footballers is different to that of young white footballers is completely accurate.

“I would like him, and society, to establish that a little bit more, talk about how reporting has an impact on the perception of people generally.

“It was much more difficult to speak up in my day because you were told you had a chip on your shoulder and you just had to get on with it. Now you do get the support. The good thing is the way he has spoken about it. Raheem hasn’t ranted and raved, he hasn’t been all ‘Woe is me’.”

Ian Murray, the Society of Editors director, says the media must address Sterling’s concerns.

“I think he had a point about the way he and some other black players are portrayed,” he said. “Taken as individual articles, [the media] would probably say there’s nothing wrong with that, but then let’s have a look in comparison and the point that he’s making, and say, ‘Is it fair? Is it a level playing field?’

“I think there will be some soul-searching going on in newsrooms today, and discussions saying, ‘Well, are we being fair?’”