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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Sport
Guardian sport

Raheem Sterling and Jürgen Klopp would have been great fit, says agent

Raheem Sterling
Raheem Sterling has scored four goals in eight league games for Manchester City following his hat-trick against Bournemouth last weekend. Photograph: BPI/Rex Shutterstock

Raheem Sterling and Jürgen Klopp would have been a perfect fit at Liverpool according to the player’s agent, Aidy Ward, who has defended his role in his client’s £49m summer move to Manchester City.

After Brendan Rodgers was sacked earlier this month Klopp took charge at Liverpool for the first time last weekend in a 0-0 draw at Tottenham on the same day that a Sterling hat-trick helped City to a 5-1 win over Bournemouth which kept Manuel Pellegrini’s men top of the table.

“The new Liverpool manager probably would have been a great fit for Raheem – passionate, disciplined in the right way, new ideas, not afraid of trying new things. He’ll do great at Liverpool,” Ward told the Daily Mail.

“Would Raheem under Klopp have been a good scenario? Yes, 100%, definitely, mainly because of the person Klopp is – the passion, the drive, the emotion, wanting to achieve. He’s going to get the best out of those players. It could have been a dream come true.”

Sterling’s departure from Anfield over the summer came after his relationship with the hierarchy at Liverpool had deteriorated markedly over the course of last season once talks over a new contract at Anfield, which were initiated last October, quickly stalled.

Ward was blamed for his role in Sterling agitating for a move but the player’s representative added: “I became the bad guy, that’s how I was portrayed. It started from the PR behind Liverpool. There is no issue with the fans there, they don’t know the full story, and there are lots of good people at Liverpool.

“I have no issue with anyone but Rodgers: he had a massive job with massive funds. How did he do? Good coach, but as a manager I didn’t like certain things about how he dealt with Raheem.”

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