Raheem Sterling hints at desire to leave Man City and move abroad | OneFootball

Raheem Sterling has suggested he would be open to leaving Manchester City in search of more playing time.

No City player has made more appearances under Pep Guardiola than Sterling but after falling out of favour in the second half of last season, the England international has made just two Premier League starts this term.

And with his contract up at the end of the 2022/23 season, Sterling has hinted he may look to move on rather than extending his stay at the Etihad Stadium, with a switch to a foreign club a possibility.

“I’m not a person that’s going to complain, I’ve not tried to make it a bigger deal than it actually is,” Sterling told FT Business of Sport on Thursday evening.

“I get on with my work, do what I need to do. And I’m just raring to go: playing football matches regularly, scoring goals regularly.

“At the end of the day, if football for me is not at a certain standard I’m not really at my happiest. If I want my happiness at a certain level I need to be playing football. I need to be scoring goals and enjoying myself.

“If there was the option to go somewhere else for more game time I would be open to it. As I said football is the most important thing to me. Challenges that I have set myself from a young age and dreams as well.

“As an English player all I know is the Premier League and I’ve always thought you know maybe one day I’d love to play abroad, to see how I would come up against that challenge.”

The 26-year-old has recently been linked with a loan move to Barcelona in January, while Real Madrid are also understood to have been keeping tabs on him for some time.

But an injury to Ferran Torres which could see the Spaniard sidelined for up to six weeks may now offer Sterling the opportunity to get the game-time at City he desires.