Manchester City has reportedly placed an €80million (£67m) price tag on Raheem Sterling amid interest from Barcelona.
The Catalan giants are
desperate to improve their forward line either in the January window or next
summer and have placed the England star on their shortlist of potential
targets.
As reported by Sportsmail
last week, Sterling wants to remain at Manchester City but will consider his
future at the Premier League champions if he continues to struggle for
consistent games.
No player has ever appeared
in more matches managed by Pep Guardiola at City, yet the 26-year-old has started
only two league games since the opening weekend of the season.
'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 said earlier this month.
'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.'
Sterling has 18 months
remaining on his current contract at the Etihad Stadium but has opted against
opening discussions over an extension until his short-term future is resolved.
Now, according to Spanish
newspaper Marca, City have told any club interested in signing Sterling that
they will have to pay £67m to get a deal done.
Barcelona's need for a new
winger is exacerbated by Ousmane Dembele's contract situation with his deal set
to expire at the end of the season. The club could look to move him on in
January to avoid losing their £135million signing on a free.
Recent reports in Spain have
linked Barcelona with an initial loan move for Sterling because their financial
woes mean they could not afford to pay a huge fee for the former Liverpool star
at present.
The club is in financial
ruin, due to their debt which stands at more than £1billion, which contributed
to La Liga slashing their wage bill to a maximum of £90m - equivalent to that
of Watford - last month.
But it is thought Ronald
Koeman will still have £13.7m (€16m) in January as part of their FIFA Fair Play
commitment despite the financial strain on the club.
And while that sum is
extremely unlikely to be able to sign Sterling or Spain star Dani Olmo - the
supposed other main target for the club in January - it would be used to pay a
fee to either City or RB Leipzig in an initial loan deal.
In a further blow to
Sterling's playing time at City, manager Guardiola recently warned his squad he
cannot guarantee any of them minutes.
He said last week: ‘Raheem’s such
an important player for us, many players are so important. If they are not
satisfied, it is so simple. With their agents, go to the club and say, “I am
not happy, I want to leave” and we are going to find a solution.
‘I am pretty sure of that. We
want people committed and happy to be here. You want more minutes? I cannot
assure them, not Raheem, not any of them.’
Guardiola added: ‘Where you
have to show how wrong I am is three o’clock on the pitch. The guys playing
against Burnley, stay calm and help the team. Show me how wrong I was, or make
me feel bad.
‘The biggest athletes in the
world, they speak on the grass. That is where they have to talk.
‘You are complaining... then
OK, go out and win the game. The message is not just for Raheem, it is for all
the players.’
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