England player Raheem Sterling has been forced to leave the World Cup in Qatar after armed intruders broke into his home whilst his family was inside. The forward was missing from the Three Lion's 3-0 victory over Senegal on Sunday night after the incident took place on Saturday evening.
Reports said that Sterling was said to have been shaken and concerned about his children and partner following the break-in. The Chelsa Winger was flooded with support on social media as Match of the Day host Gary Lineker wrote: "Thoughts are with @sterling7 and his family after their awful and harrowing ordeal."
Speaking at the press conference after the victorious game, England Manager Gareth Southgate said: "Raheem, as the FA statement says, is having to deal with a family situation, so he’s going back to England. “We’ve got to give him time to try to resolve that or be there for his family. That’s the most important thing at this time, so we’re going to give him that space.
“I spent a lot of time with Raheem this morning, but you know you have days where events happen and you have to deal with them. “He’s on his way home and, yeah, we’re obviously mindful of him being allowed space and (having) privacy respected, so we don’t want to talk in too much detail.”
