“New Werner," “We’ve seen this story before” – Chelsea fans fear 27-year-old star could be victim of curse after display in 3-0 defeat to Leeds

New Chelsea forward Raheem Sterling endured a difficult outing during the Blues' 3-0 defeat against Leeds United on Sunday (August 21).

Though his pace caused problems for the Leeds defense, Sterling struggled to consistently display incision in the final third. The 27-year-old took just one shot, which was off target, and had just 33 touches during his 87 minutes on the pitch (as per Sofascore).

Sterling did register one key pass, but also completed just a solitary dribble. He was caught offside twice, with one of the calls coming after he found the back of the net. It was a rough outing for the Englishman, who had looked good during the Blues' previous match against Tottenham Hotspur, where he recorded an assist.

His display seemed to provide fans of his team with deja vu as they compared him to former striker Timo Werner. Werner, who re-joined Red Bull Leipzig this summer, often strayed offside and struggled in the final third during his two-season stint at Stamford Bridge.

Many Chelsea fans took to social media to voice their concerns for Sterling, with one writing on Twitter:

"Timo Werner first 3 epl games : 1 assist, 2 offside goals and big chances missed. Raheem Sterling first 3 epl games : 1 assist , 1 offside goal and 1 big chance missed. We’ve seen this story before"

Another tweeted:

"Sterling is the new Werner: Line want to ruin him too."

Here are some more reactions to Sterling's display against Leeds:

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Chelsea humbled 3-0 by Leeds United after disappointing display

Chelsea met Leeds United on Matchday 3 after an encouraging 2-2 draw with Tottenham Hotspur on August 14.

Rather than building on that performance, Thomas Tuchel's men were absolutely flattened by an energetic Leeds side. Brendan Aaronson opened the scoring on the 33rd minute after robbing goalkeeper Edouard Mendy off the ball near the goal-line.

Rodrigo Moreno added a second just four minutes later, heading home from Jack Harrison's free-kick to give Jesse Marsch's men a two-goal advantage.

Chelsea improved in the second half but still struggled to consistently disturb the Leeds defense or goalkeeper Illan Meslier. Their misery was compounded in the 69th minute when Harrison bundled the ball home to make it 3-0 for the hosts.

Kalidou Koulibaly's dismissal for a second bookable offense in the 84th minute proved to be the final nail in the coffin for the Blues. They now sit 12th in the league standings with just four points from three matches.