Raheem Sterling drops hints on possible Manchester City exit
Sterling casts doubt on Man City future
England international Raheem Sterling has cast doubt over his future at the Etihad Stadium, after quotes emerged from the Manchester City star, refusing to rule out a move away from the club.
According to CBS Sports’ James Benge, Sterling – when speaking with FT Business – made mention of being open to the opportunity to move abroad for his next port of call, with playing in another country a personal dream.
Speaking at FT Business of Sport, Raheem Sterling says: If there was opportunity to go somewhere else I’d be open to it. Football’s the most important thing to me.
He speaks of his “dreams” to play abroad and “see how I’d come up against that challenge”.
— James Benge (@jamesbenge) October 14, 2021
The England man also remained cool and confident regarding his current status under Pep Guardiola, stating “I’m not a person that’s going to complain. I’ve not tried to make it a bigger deal than it actually is. I get on with my work, do what I need to do. And I’m just raring to go — playing football matches…scoring goals regularly.”
Rapid decline in stature at the Etihad
Once one of the darlings of Man City, Raheem Sterling is no longer viewed as a key piece of the puzzle under Pep Guardiola on the blue half of Manchester.
After a slow start to life at the club in 2015 in the wake of his move from Liverpool, Sterling finally got his engine revving the following season, scoring 7-goals and adding 10-assists in thirty-three Premier League fixtures. But it was the 2017-18 campaign which saw the Liverpool academy graduate truly explode, finding the back of the net 18-times and adding 15-assists in a stellar campaign.
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 04: Raheem Sterling of Manchester City celebrates with teammates after scoring his team’s fifth goal during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Southampton FC at Etihad Stadium on November 4, 2018 in Manchester, United Kingdom. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
His star would continue to rise rapidly the following year to the tune of 17-goals and 12-assists, and the winger would finally hit the 20-goal mark during the 2019-20 season. All told, Sterling’s goal contributions for City have been superb; 115-goals and 88-assists in 302-appearances, a contribution rate of 0.67 goals+assists per 90 minutes.
But despite his long-standing contributions in helping City to net three Premier League titles, Sterling has only featured in the club’s XI twice in the Premier League this season, and now finds himself firmly behind Jack Grealish in the first-team pecking order, while being used as a tactically versatile sub rather than a key asset.
It is unclear where Sterling would go should he test himself on foreign shores, but considering that the owner of 71 England caps is still just 26-years-old, there is time (and there will be suitors) for him to reassert himself on the big stage.
This article was edited by
Conor Laird.
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Premier League table
| # | Team | MP | D | P |
| 1 | Chelsea FC | 7 | 12 | 16 |
| 2 | Liverpool FC | 7 | 11 | 15 |
| 3 | Manchester City | 7 | 11 | 14 |
| 4 | Manchester United | 7 | 8 | 14 |
| 5 | Everton FC | 7 | 5 | 14 |
| 6 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 7 | 3 | 14 |
| 7 | Brentford FC | 7 | 4 | 12 |
| 8 | Tottenham Hotspur | 7 | -4 | 12 |
| 9 | West Ham United | 7 | 4 | 11 |
| 10 | Aston Villa | 7 | 1 | 10 |
| 11 | Arsenal FC | 7 | -5 | 10 |
| 12 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 7 | -1 | 9 |
| 13 | Leicester City | 7 | -3 | 8 |
| 14 | Crystal Palace | 7 | -3 | 7 |
| 15 | Watford FC | 7 | -3 | 7 |
| 16 | Leeds United | 7 | -7 | 6 |
| 17 | Southampton FC | 7 | -5 | 4 |
| 18 | Burnley FC | 7 | -6 | 3 |
| 19 | Newcastle United | 7 | -8 | 3 |
| 20 | Norwich City | 7 | -14 | 1 |
| Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 6 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City | 6 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 5 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 4 |
| Mane, Sadio | Liverpool FC | 4 |
| Maupay, Neal | Brighton & Hove Albion | 4 |
| Sarr, Ismaila | Watford FC | 4 |
| Townsend, Andros | Everton FC | 3 |
| Benrahma, Said | West Ham United | 3 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 3 |
| Gray, Demarai | Everton FC | 3 |
| Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 3 |
| Lukaku, Romelu | Chelsea FC | 3 |
| Calvert-Lewin, Dominic | Everton FC | 3 |
| Jota, Diogo | Liverpool FC | 3 |
| Hwang, Hee-chan | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 3 |
| Raphinha | Leeds United | 3 |
| Greenwood, Mason | Manchester United | 3 |
| Doucoure, Abdoulaye | Everton FC | 2 |
| Jesus, Gabriel | Manchester City | 2 |
| Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 0 | 4 |
| Skipp, Oliver | Tottenham Hotspur | 0 | 4 |
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 0 | 3 |
| Doucoure, Abdoulaye | Everton FC | 0 | 3 |
| Rice, Declan | West Ham United | 0 | 3 |
| Cooper, Liam | Leeds United | 0 | 3 |
| Norgaard, Christian | Brentford FC | 0 | 3 |
| Tarkowski, James | Burnley FC | 0 | 3 |
| Veltman, Joel | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 3 |
| Brownhill, Josh | Burnley FC | 0 | 3 |
| Etebo, Oghenekaro | Watford FC | 0 | 3 |
| Djenepo, Moussa | Southampton FC | 0 | 3 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 0 | 1 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 0 | 2 |
| Maupay, Neal | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 2 |
| Jimenez, Raul | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0 | 2 |
| Raphinha | Leeds United | 0 | 2 |
| Gallagher, Conor | Crystal Palace | 0 | 2 |
| Alonso, Marcos | Chelsea FC | 0 | 2 |
| Ward Prowse, James | Southampton FC | 1 | 1 |
| Player | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 7 |
| Doucoure, Abdoulaye | Everton FC | 4 |
| Jesus, Gabriel | Manchester City | 4 |
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 3 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 3 |
| Saint-Maximin, Allan | Newcastle United | 3 |
| Kovacic, Mateo | Chelsea FC | 3 |
| Townsend, Andros | Everton FC | 2 |
| Benrahma, Said | West Ham United | 2 |
| Ings, Danny | Aston Villa | 2 |
| Toney, Ivan | Brentford FC | 2 |
| Jimenez, Raul | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 2 |
| Bamford, Patrick | Leeds United | 2 |
| James, Reece | Chelsea FC | 2 |
| Azpilicueta, Cesar | Chelsea FC | 2 |
| Gross, Pascal | Brighton & Hove Albion | 2 |
| King, Joshua | Watford FC | 2 |
| Pereira, Ricardo | Leicester City | 2 |
| Alexander-Arnold, Trent | Liverpool FC | 2 |
| Rice, Declan | West Ham United | 2 |
