Welcome to the City Is Ours daily round-up, where we take a look at some of the best Manchester City stories from the past 24 hours.
Having failed to make much of an impression on the pitch this season, Raheem Sterling is certainly leaving his mark on the back pages. The England international's future has dominated our transfer round-ups in recent weeks, though it seems a decision may finally have been made.
Meanwhile, a former England defender has told Steven Gerrard he needs to help Aston Villa forget about Jack Grealish and Pep Guardiola is hoping to bolster his squad with a former La Masia starlet.
Sterling exit confirmed?
This one has been rumbling on for some time now but it seems like we might finally have the answer.
90min report that Sterling has told City he wishes to leave the club on loan in January with Barcelona his preferred destination.
The report goes on to add that Sterling sees the prospect of playing at Camp Nou as 'too good to turn down' and is hoping a temporary switch can be sanctioned in the upcoming window.
I know players can often be vilified when their desire to leave a club becomes public knowledge (if indeed the reports are true) but I wish Sterling nothing but good luck if he does make his Etihad exit.
The England international has been a brilliant servant for City and has played a key role in the club notching three Premier League titles in the past four seasons.
Who knows, if Sterling returns to form at Barca then there may yet be a future for him at City, but if this is the end then I wish him nothing but good luck.
Keown tells Villa to 'forget about Grealish'
If only it was that easy, ey?
Martin Keown has told his former club Aston Villa that they need to forget about Jack Grealish and is hoping Gerrard's appointment can help them move on following Grealish's £100 million move to City in the summer.
Writing in his column for the Daily Mail, Keown said: "Gerrard has inherited a squad full of options and he will have been burning the midnight oil in a bid to find his best XI.
"Dean Smith's team was built around Jack Grealish and Villa still haven't recovered from losing the goals, assists and creativity which came from their star man.
"After his £100 million sale to Manchester City, Villa didn't try to replace Grealish with one player but three, using that money to sign Emiliano Buendia, Leon Bailey and Danny Ings.
"Yet Smith never found a happy balance. Helping Villa forget about Grealish is part of Gerrard's remit."
This one feels a little like when you lose the love of your life and your mate just gives you a pat on the back and says 'forget about her, let's go for a drink'.
Grealish has been criticised at times this season, yet it's easy to forget how other big-money wingers have fared at City in their first few seasons under Guardiola.
Riyad Mahrez, Leroy Sane and Bernardo Silva all took their time to adapt to the Catalan tactician's demanding style of play, and so Grealish should perhaps be offered a little more leeway by those lambasting his start to life in a City shirt.
Guardiola targets Simons
Guardiola's ties with Barcelona will never go away and it seems he could be lining up a move for one of their former academy stars.
The Daily Mirror report that the City boss is keen to thrash out a deal for Paris Saint-Germain youngster Xavi Simons, a little over two years on from his move away from Barcelona.
The 18-year-old has made just one league appearance for the Ligue 1 outfit since his move to the French capital, and with less than a year to run on his current deal and a renewal looking unlikely, City could snap up the hot prospect on a free transfer next summer.
With Fernandinho expected to leave the Etihad next year and Bernardo's future still up in the air, this move seems to make a lot of sense as City plans for the future.
The youngster's lack of first-team football may be an issue and he'd certainly need time to adapt if he does move to City, but Guardiola definitely needs to freshen up his midfield in the coming years and this could be a great start.
Do you want Sterling to stay at City? Follow City Is Ours content editor Ross Jackson on Twitter to get involved in the discussion and give us your thoughts in the comments section below.
