Pep Guardiola heaps praise on “incredible” Sterling amid contract talks

Pep Guardiola hails Raheem Sterling as a top player after Manchester City thrash Southampton 6-1 at the Etihad. 

Sterling was supersonic against the Saints on Sunday, as he turned the opposition’s defenders inside out. The England international contributed to all six of City’s goals and grabbed two for himself.

Sterling came in for a lot of criticism at the World Cup over the summer but for City, he seems a completely different player. For his club, Sterling is switched on, his fight for the ball is matched only by his ambition when he has it. As an attacker, he is showing incredible intuition as he links up with players around him to slice through defences like butter.

And the 23-year-old’s abilities are not lost on the City boss, who was full of praise for the former Liverpool man’s versatility after the game.

PEP: @sterling7 is a top player. But he is so young. He is incredible, sharp, fast, clever, fighting, ambitious, decisive, can play on both sides, in the middle, receive ball behind lines. an Incredible performance – with and without the ball. #MCISOU #mancity pic.twitter.com/nQLfYAg943

— Manchester City (@ManCity) November 4, 2018

“Sterling is a top player. But he is so young,” Guardiola was quoted as saying by Manchester City’s Twitter account. “He is incredible, sharp, fast, clever, fighting, ambitious, decisive, can play on both sides, in the middle, receive ball behind lines. an Incredible performance – with and without the ball.”

Sterling is also continuing his lethal form in front of goal for the Citizens, netting six in nine appearances this season after scoring 23 goals in all competitions last term. When asked what had contributed to Sterling’s golden touch, Guardiola told the Manchester Evening News: “His head. The first season, the ball arrived in front of the box and he was scared, he was looking, who am I going to pass the ball [to]? That was our feeling.

“He was not looking where the keeper was, it was his teammate. We spoke about that and said ‘Try to score goals. It doesn’t matter if you miss, be aggressive.’

“Now you have the feeling, where is the goal and go over there. His second goal, he arrives to where the keeper is and has to shoot or pass. I have the feeling he is now enjoying scoring goals and making assists and being important in winning players.

“He is becoming a winning player. We cannot forget he is just 23. He is stable and is focused on what he has to do to become a better player. If he has the drive to become a better player, he can reach whatever he wants.”

Guardiola stopped short of saying he should be considered one of the world’s best players, suggesting that Sterling is still accident prone in possession at times.

“Still he loses simple balls, like the Tottenham game when he made an amazing assist in the first few minutes but then lost a lot of balls. In this kind of team, to be stable, they have to improve that. Still, his pace and quality is incredible.”

Manchester derby

Manchester City extended their unbeaten run to 11 games in the Premier League and returned to the top of the table on Sunday. Their unbeaten streak will endure a major test next Sunday as they host rivals Manchester United in the season’s first Manchester derby.

The last time the two sides met at the Etihad, City had a golden opportunity to win the league, but they gave away a two-goal lead to lose 2-3.

A win for City could set the tone for the rest of the campaign but, if United manage to repeat their success, they will regain important ground on their local rivals and put a chaotic start to the season firmly in their rearview.

The post Pep Guardiola heaps praise on “incredible” Sterling amid contract talks appeared first on Squawka News.

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