Raheem Sterling future up in the air; Guardiola refers to ‘impossible’ deal

Raheem Sterling might be solely focused on firing England through the final of the European Championships, but his club future remains complex.

The striker, who has scored three goals at Euro 2020, has been one of the Three Lions’ top performers. The Manchester City man is one of the first names on the England team sheet and will almost certainly be a starter against Denmark in Wednesday’s semi-final at Wembley.

Sterling’s club future though remains clouded.  The 26-year-old, who scored 14 times last season in all competitions, is under contract until 2023.

However, the attacker was left out of a number of times by Pep Guardiola towards the end of the season. He did though start the Champions League final defeat to Chelsea.

The Athletic  claim Guardiola does want Sterling to stay. The outlet also report City will offer Sterling a new contract after Euro 2020.

His performances at Wembley and in Rome will have surely inflated his value and City will want to protect that with an extension to his deal.

The report claims Sterling will be offered new terms once he returns from a break after Euro 2020.

It’s certainly not as straight forward as the former Liverpool man signing a new deal. It’s unclear what Sterling’s stance is after a season in which he failed to hit top form, despite City winning the title.

An exit could still be on the table if Sterling’s desire is to move on. Similarly if a substantial offer was to be made for Sterling then Etihad officials would consider his sale.

Just where a bid would come from is unclear, and it seems highly unlikely.

It’s understood Sterling and Guardiola’s relationship was fractious towards the end of the season. With the report claiming things were not patched up between the pair before Sterling joined up with England.

Sterling now looks after his own future after parting with agent Aidy Ward and he is understood to be far from happy that he was offered in part-exchange for Harry Kane, as per the Mirror.

Guardiola: ‘Impossible for City’

Whether or not Sterling’s feelings will push him towards a City exit remain unclear.

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Guardiola has though claimed City cannot buy another striker this summer. So with Sergio Aguero already history, it’s unlikely Guardiola would personally sanction a transfer for Sterling.

Guardiola told TV3 in Catalonia: “At the prices we are not going to buy any strikers, it is impossible, we cannot afford it. It is impossible.

“All clubs are struggling financially; we are not an exception. We have Gabriel [Jesus], Ferran [Torres] who has been incredible in this position, we have young players in the academy, we play many times with a false nine.

“I don’t know what is going to happen. Maybe we are going to buy but maybe we are not going to buy a striker for next season. Today there is more chance we aren’t going to buy a striker for next season.”

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