‘Fuming’ Sterling had to leave City for Chelsea

RAHEEM STERLING says he was left ‘fuming and raging’ by his treatment at Manchester City which prompted his big-money move to Chelsea last month.

The England star, who won four Premier League titles at City before struggling to nail down a place in Pep Guardiola’s side, complained he didn’t feel wanted at The Etihad.

Sterling spent seven seasons at City but said missing his three children’s birthdays, in trying to convince Guardiola he was worth keeping on, proved too much.

‘Everyone wants to feel wanted, football is no different,’ Sterling told

Sky Sports. ‘When you play your heart out, sacrifice some of your kids’ birthdays, and then get treated in a certain way, it’s disappointing.

‘At the time I was fuming, raging, but it’s gone, it’s in the past and I can only focus on the present, which is now, here at Chelsea, and the opportunity I’ve got here to go out and showcase my talents once again.’

On his £47.5million summer departure, Sterling, speaking ahead of Chelsea’s league visit to Leeds today, added: ‘Misunderstandings, contracts running down. It was a shame to see how it ended because I had such a great time there.

‘A lot of things came into play, a lot of reasons, but I wasn’t complaining. I was ready to challenge and even with some of the performances I put in, I couldn’t guarantee myself a place. So it just didn’t make sense to fight a battle you can never win.’