Raheem Sterling has returned to form and is a key player at City again, after a period when it looked like he might seek pastures new.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has lauded England international Raheem Sterling for his recent displays at the Etihad.
The 27-year-old had been linked with a move away from Man City after struggling to get into Pep’s starting line-up earlier in the 2021-22 campaign.
It seems the Spaniard’s formula of making Sterling work hard to get back to playing regularly in the City side has worked well, as the winger scored his 100th Premier League goal against Wolves on Saturday - making it five goals in eight games.
However, Guardiola says all the credit goes to Sterling, not him,
"I would like to say yes for my ego and for a better contract for the next seasons," he said. "But I am sorry. that is the most ridiculous thing. All this credit is for the player.
"The day before we played Aston Villa, he was not selected. But on the day of the game Ilkay Gundogan had a pain in his back and could not play. Raheem played. Look at the first 15-20 minutes, it was the best 15-20 minutes he played for months. Give him the credit."
“You can play well and still lose due to factors outside your control.”
Guardiola also used Sunday's Formula One decider as an example to show footballers they can be on the losing side even if they have played very well.
"Players have to fight to the end like (Max) Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton have done. But there is something you cannot control that means you are the winner or not," said Guardiola.
"In the end, a law or a VAR or a bad decision can mean you don’t win.
"What you have to do is like Raheem has done in the last games and never give up."
Sterling began his career at Queens Park Rangers before joining Liverpool as a 15-year-old in 2010 for an initial fee of £600,000 and then sealed a move to City back in 2015 for a record fee for an English player at the time.
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