Raheem Sterling was instrumental in Manchester City‘s 4-0 win over Liverpool on Thursday night and after the game said his team wanted to prove something of a point against the newly crowned champions.
Jurgen Klopp’s team are far out in front of the chasing pack and have won the league at a record earliest point, but on the night City were by far the better on the ball and had a ruthless clinical edge.
Sterling notched one goal, assisted another and almost scored a second – ultimately recorded as an own goal by Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
The City forward made the point that Liverpool have proven they are the team to be measured against now and it was important for the Etihad Stadium club to show they could compete on the same level.
“They’ve been brilliant all year. We knew we had to come out strong and have a good game against them; we started strong and credit to the boys,” Sterling told Sky Sports.
“We knew we were behind [in the league] and disappointed at times this season, losing games we shouldn’t have.
“This was a test against the current champions and we wanted to make a point.
“The manager said we have to try to do our best and next season starts today, so we’ve done well.”
Along with Sterling, Kevin De Bruyne was again a top performer, while Phil Foden continued his impressive run with another goal.
Sterling acknowledged that his young team-mate was pushing for more regular minutes on the pitch and said his rise highlighted how City can improve further, with other talented youngsters hoping for inclusion in a season which could yet end in significant silverware.
“It’s a team which is changing all the time. You see Phil coming through and he is playing likes he’s been in the first team for a year.
“Every opportunity he starts, he does brilliantly so we’ve got great players coming through.
“We know we’ve got the FA Cup and Champions League [ahead], these Premier League games are leading up to that.
“We’ve got to finish strong and that will help us against Real Madrid.”
City face Arsenal in the FA Cup semi-final, with a second leg against Madrid also lying ahead in Europe.
They are now 20 points behind Liverpool in the table, but 11 clear of Leicester and look set to finish second.
