Sterling left the World Cup and went to see his family: there was an armed assault at his house in England.

England's selection reveals Sterling's absence due to personal reasons

The England selection revealed that Raheem Sterling was not going to play the match against Senegal for personal reasons, and hours later details of what happened became known. As reported by the Daily Telegraph, the footballer returned to his country after learning that his family had been the victim of an armed assault at their home in London.

In the hours before the match against the African squad, for the round of 16 of the 2022 Qatar World Cup, the Chelsea forward was excluded from the list of 'The Three Lions' and there was concern. Finally, despite the notable offensive absence, the British team won 3-0, with goals from Jordan Henderson, Harry Kane, and Bukayo Saka.

After the match, coach Gareth Southgate could not avoid referring to what happened with Sterling and confirmed that the footballer's loved ones had been robbed at their home. "Raheem will fly back to England. He needs time with his family to deal with that, and I don't want to pressure him to come back," said the strategist.

In the same line, England's national team coach assured that the athlete's priority will be to be at home and did not confirm if he will be able to include him in the next match of the World Cup. Let's remember that in the quarter-finals, the English team will have to face France, the champion in Russia 2018.

According to Daily Telegraph Football, Sterling committed to return to concentration in Qatar 2022 as soon as he is sure his family is safe. According to the same source, the striker's home was violated with firearms during Saturday night, before the clash against Senegal, and his children were the most affected by the shocking incident.

It is worth mentioning that the 27-year-old attacker is a key player in Gareth Southgate's scheme and was a starter in the first two matches of the World Cup, against Iran and the United States; while he was a substitute in the match against Wales. In the debut match against the Asian team, Raheem scored a goal and provided an assist.