Kevin De Bruyne says he was expecting Raheem Sterling to live up to the media perception of him when he joined Manchester City, but the England man quickly proved that to be wrong.
De Bruyne and Sterling both moved to City in the summer of 2015, and have both become key men in Pep Guardiola's side that won the Premier League last season and are in the hunt for a second title this year.
But De Bruyne admitted that he was expecting Sterling to be the 'flashy', 'arrogant' player painted of him by sections of the media after his £50m move to City.
Speaking to the Player's Tribune, De Bruyne said: "Before I came to Manchester City, I didn’t really know what to make of this Raheem Sterling guy. I had never met him, and from what I’d read about him in the English press, I thought he was going to be a very different character.
Jurgen Klopp reveals the advantage Man City have over Liverpool FC in title race
"Raheem and I have this strong connection, because we arrived at City around the same time, and there was a lot of negativity about us in the press.
"They said I was 'the Chelsea reject.' They said Raheem was this flashy guy who left Liverpool for money. They said we were difficult characters.
"Then I got to City and I actually met Raheem, and we’d talk a bit after training, and I thought, 'Wait, this guy seems really cool? What’s the story here?'"
Pep Guardiola picks out two Kevin De Bruyne qualities that can push Man City to glory
Explaining how his and Sterling's sons were born at similar times, De Bruyne revealed a conversation with Sterling who admitted he had a similar misconception of his new teammate.
"It’s a great lesson, I think. In my experience, footballers can be a lot different than you expect, especially if you really get to know them," De Bruyne said.
"This is the real truth: Raheem is one of the nicest, most humble guys I’ve met in football."
Pep Guardiola given huge Man City boost ahead of title run in vs Liverpool FC
