Cape Town - Raheem Sterling always seems to be in the news for more than just his soccer skills.
More recently it was his new gun tattoo, a tribute to his father who died when Sterling was two years old, that hit the headlines.
The England and Manchester City player revealed the inking at training as the national team continued their preparations for the FIFA World Cup in Russia next month.
In the light of this, Twitter user Adam Keyworth did a thread on the many times media headlines portrayed the Man City midfielder poorly.
From calling Sterling a “footie idiot' to accusing him of being greedy for asking for a raise, the headlines seemed to paint a bad picture of how certain media houses report on the 23-year-old.
Earlier this week Sterling took to social media to explain the message behind his new tattoo.
"When I was 2 my father died from being gunned down to death I made a promise to myself I would never touch a gun in my life time [sic],” he posted on Instagram stories. "I shoot with my right foot, so it has a deeper meaning and still unfinished.”
However, while reporting on this Sky Sports misquoted the line in a graphic on their news show, adding the word “again”. Their version read, “I made a promise to myself I would never touch a gun again in my lifetime.”
After getting backlash for the error, the show apologised for misquoting the player.
“Last night we made a mistake in our reporting of Raheem Sterling’s statement on his tattoo. We apologise for this error and any distress it has caused Raheem and his family,” Sky Sports wrote, according to The Independent.
SEE THE TWEETS BELOW:
[Thread] a selection of times when our national press have chosen to run stories on Raheem Sterling.
— Adam Keyworth (@adamkeyworth) May 28, 2018
1. The one where Raheem was 'tired'. pic.twitter.com/6K3cHu6r7T
2. The one where Raheem was labelled 'footie idiot' for no apparent reason. pic.twitter.com/hgPKbA8dqP
— Adam Keyworth (@adamkeyworth) May 28, 2018
4. The one where Raheem was 'obscene' having bought his mum a nice sink out of his own money. pic.twitter.com/EZcYtgw9YA
— Adam Keyworth (@adamkeyworth) May 28, 2018
5. The one where Raheem dared to fly on a budget airline. pic.twitter.com/UA4FJNFsFb
— Adam Keyworth (@adamkeyworth) May 28, 2018
6. The one where Raheem forgot to clean his car. pic.twitter.com/5tPqWHK2nU
— Adam Keyworth (@adamkeyworth) May 28, 2018
7. The one where Raheem the 'love rat' dared to propose to his 'long-suffering' girlfriend. pic.twitter.com/qf67RPrON8
— Adam Keyworth (@adamkeyworth) May 28, 2018
8. The one where Raheem was called a 'rat' for being seen with a friend on holiday. pic.twitter.com/o82r8MtsKg
— Adam Keyworth (@adamkeyworth) May 28, 2018
9. The one where Raheem dared to eat breakfast even though he didn't win Young Player of the Year. pic.twitter.com/NUsQPsALQ9
— Adam Keyworth (@adamkeyworth) May 28, 2018
10. The one where Raheem got a personal tattoo because he wanted to dedicate something to his dad who was shot and killed when Raheem was just 2. pic.twitter.com/ZLpL9efOKm
— Adam Keyworth (@adamkeyworth) May 28, 2018
