IT’S STERLING WORK, RAHEEM

Guardiola: His extra training is paying off brilliantly in front of goal

PEP GUARDIOLA has revealed how extra training sessions have turned Raheem Sterling into Manchester City’s top scorer this season.

The England winger has 10 goals in all competitions this term, more than City strikers Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus, and is already just one short of his best-ever haul.

And Guardiola said Sterling, who scored in City’s 4-2 Champions League win at Napoli, has become more ruthless in front of goal thanks to more coaching.

“I think he’s enjoying scoring goals,” said Blues’ boss Guardiola. “He’s not scared, he’s not afraid to take a risk.

“And now he’s seeing how much fun, how good it is, to score goals. Now he’s more focused on that.

“Mikel Arteta, our first-team coach, is working many, many hours and days after training specifically about the last action on the pitch – that control in the last moment to make the right movement in the final three or four metres.

“Raheem has wanted to stay there, to improve, to practise, to shoot at the goalkeepers.

“It’s part of the mentality he needs. He knows a striker has to score goals and he has to do that if he wants to achieve the next step.

“You won’t survive at the high-level teams in his position if you don’t score goals.

“Now the confidence is there and the club has new players who can score goals. All the strikers and wingers have goals. It’s not just Gabriel or Sergio – and that’s important for us.

“But I think it’s mainly because Raheem has decided, ‘I want to score goals, I can do that and I’m enjoying that.’

“His final pass still has to improve. He has got better, but he can still do better.

“Having more patience to analyse what is that small gap, and it’s a small gap in the position he’s in.

“In the middle you have more space – the goalkeeper, central defenders, full-backs, holding midfielders are there. Sometimes it’s not possible but the big, big players decide well in those moments.

“But we can’t forget he’s only 22. We demand a lot with those kind of players. But he’s young, he has time and we’re there to help him.”

Sterling was wanted by Arsenal, City’s opponents tomorrow, as part of the deal to take striker Alexis Sanchez the other way, that ultimately fell through on deadline day.

Guardiola (left) insisted there was no way he would have allowed Sterling to be part of the deal and refused to rule out a fresh move for Sanchez next summer, when the Gunners’ Chile star will probably be a free agent.

“The transfer window is closed, so it’s not time to talk about that,” said Guardiola. “You know my opinion of Alexis, but he’s an Arsenal player. Add another player? Maybe, we will see.

“We’re going to decide that, whether it’s at the back or in the middle, so I think next season we’ll have to shake the team again a little.”

City are unbeaten in the Premier League, but Guardiola said there was no way they can match Arsenal’s Invincibles of 2003-04 by going the whole season unbeaten.

“Arsene’s record belongs to him,” said Guardiola.

“We’re not going to break it. He has to be calm.

“It was an exceptional team, something fantastic.

“We don’t want to break this record, but we do want to play well and beat them on Sunday.”