Manchester City Hold Raheem Sterling Suspicion Amid Future Uncertainty And Chelsea Interest

Manchester City held a long-standing belief on a possible departure for Raheem Sterling from the club, as per a new report.

Sterling has been one of the protagonists of the Pep Guardiola era at the Etihad Stadium, having played an immense role in Manchester City’s success under the Catalan since 2016.

After the 27-year-old was publicly vilified for his underwhelming displays for England at the 2016 European Championships, Guardiola took the under-fire forward under his wing and nurtured him into one of the best wingers in world football.

Raheem Sterling on international duty with England (Image: Alamy)

The sublime run of form shown by the boy from Brent between 2017 and 2020 is regarded by many as his peak at the Etihad Stadium - a period when he was one of Manchester City’s most consistent goalscorers alongside Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus.

However, things went awry in the 2020/21 season as rumoured disagreements behind the scenes between Raheem Sterling and Pep Guardiola coupled with his divisive showings on the pitch saw the former Liverpool star lose his starting spot to Phil Foden in City’s league and Champions League run-in.

As Sterling remained in and out of the squad the previous campaign, it has been widely reported the £49 million man could be headed to Chelsea in the summer.

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola and forward Raheem Sterling

Sterling is understood to be looking for reassurances over regular game time as he enters the final 12 months of his current contract at the Etihad Stadium.

The attacker is yet to commit his long-term future to the Premier League and following City’s acquisitions of Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez, Sterling could choose to leave and take up a new challenge.

Having often revealed his aspirations of playing abroad at some point in his career, Sterling has been linked with the likes of Barcelona and Real Madrid at various points in recent seasons.

Raheem Sterling could leave Manchester City this summer (Image: Alamy)

A new report has lifted the lid on the long-standing view amongst officials at the Etihad Stadium over a potential exit for Raheem Sterling should he decide against extending his current deal past 2023.

As per a report by Daniel Taylor of The Athletic, the belief at Manchester City was always that should he ever seek an exit, Sterling would favour a move to Real Madrid over signing for a different Premier League side.

This school of thought tends to exist among Manchester City supporters as well as it has nearly been out in the open that a sensational move to one of Spain’s giants is something Sterling has dreamt of since his early days at Liverpool.

Raheem Sterling against Real Madrid for Manchester City in the Champions League semi-final (Image: Alamy)

So much so that in the weeks leading to Manchester City's Champions League Round of 16 tie with Real Madrid in 2020, Sterling posed for the front cover of Spanish magazine AS, with a Los Blancos shirt draped over his shoulder as he hinted towards a potential move to the Santiago Bernabeu in the future.

However, it seems as the prospect of joining hands with Thomas Tuchel at Stamford Bridge is the most attractive and feasible option for the England international, as it remains to be seen what the coming months hold for Manchester City and the Kingston-born forward.

Manchester City forwards Raheem Sterling and Gabriel Jesus (Image: Alamy)

It is believed Sterling is keen on sorting his club future in the weeks to follow ahead of pre-season, with Chelsea understood to be eyeing a swoop for the Manchester City forward.

Alongside Sterling, Gabriel Jesus could be to join Arsenal while several clubs in England register their interest in Oleksandr Zinchenko, who could be tempted to leave should the opportunity of regular first-team football in midfield arrive alongside a suitable offer to the Premier League champions.