Liverpool's Raheem Sterling out on extended break in Jamaica
Liverpool's Raheem Sterling is out of the club's Premier League trip to Sunderland as he is in Jamaica on an extended winter break.
Sterling, 20, posted a picture of himself in a floppy sunhat and wearing sunglasses on Thursday but Brendan Rodgers said he "always planned" to leave out the striker.
Sterling, who has played more minutes than any other Premier League outfield player this season, missed the FA Cup win over AFC Wimbledon after being given permission and is on an extended leave.
Brendan Rodgers on @sterling31: "This is the last game he misses. He'll be back in training next week" #SUNLIV
- Premier League (@premierleague) January 10, 2015
Rodgers had already told the Liverpool Echo that Sterling's mid-season break will help him and the team.
"If we're going to maximise what we can get out of him, then he needs that bit of recovery time," he said. "A period of rest and the recuperation will do him the world of good. It's been a gruelling first half of the season for him with a lot of matches and a lot of work."
Up��
A photo posted by Raheem Sterling x �� (@31sterling) on