PEP AND CITY STARS PLEDGE LOYALTY DESPITE UEFA RAP

MANCHESTER CITY chiefs believe Pep Guardiola and his players remain committed to the club despite the two-year Champions League ban. Guardiola addressed the squad before training on Saturday, urging them to stay focused on the job in hand prior to next week’s Champions League date with Real Madrid. City’s future in the competition is unclear after UEFA issued a two-year ban for breaching Financial Fair Play regulations between 2012 and 2016. The Premier League champions intend to contest the verdict. Their appeal is set to be heard by the Court of Arbitration for Sport and domestic rivals want that process speeded up to provide clarity. Raheem Sterling has become the first City star to publicly commit his future to the club.

Real Madrid are already being linked with a mega-money move for the England forward this summer. However, Sterling does not want the uncertainty over City’s European future to affect him going into the business end of the season. His agent Aidy Ward told

Sportsmail: ‘Raheem is solely focused on Manchester City and will not be distracted by any talk of transfers at the moment.’ The news will come as a huge boost to Guardiola, who needs Sterling committed to City if they are to stand any chance of lifting the Champions League this season. Guardiola is thought to be ready to honour his deal until the end of next year despite having a break clause in his contract at the end of this season. The mood at training on Saturday was said to be upbeat ahead of Wednesday’s rearranged match against West Ham. Players have

been urged to stay calm over their futures. Sterling, Kevin De Bruyne and Bernardo Silva are among those whose potential availability will alert Europe’s heavyweights. Only three first-team players — Sergio Aguero, Fernandinho and Leroy Sane — will be out of contract at the end of next season. David Silva has signalled his intention to leave the Etihad Stadium in June.