TA: Sterling's contract extension depends on the appearance of the season, and he and Guardiola are very professional

The Athletic UK Manchester City correspondent Sam Lee updated his column about Manchester City winger Sterling Sterling, which was titled Raheem Sterling's Manchester City future – it's complicated

In addition to publishing details about Stirling's potential departure rumors last year in the first half of the article, Sam Lee also revealed some of Sterling's current presence in the team. Sterling's contract expires at the end of next season, and there is no new news about his renewal now.

City have proven countless times that if a player wants to leave, they won't stop him. The source said Sterling did not want to leave, but he also did not know whether it was the right thing to stay.

He was named the Premier League Player of the Month in December, which could pave the way for City to offer him a new contract. The source believes there are no problems between Sterling and his teammates, and there are no problems between any members of the team, it is a very united team.

Sources with close ties to the club's young players often mention Sterling, saying he is always available to help and advise, for example, he has a close relationship with Cole Palmer, 19, who has been promoted to the first team this season.

The same is true for the England team, where Sterling also communicated last week as big brother with Rashford, who was not in good shape, and a few months ago Sterling himself needed some encouraging words, but he is much happier now, so he gave Rashford the same encouragement.

But this time last year everything was fine, but in the spring things changed. If Sterling finds himself suddenly out of the squad again, City's desire to complete a contract extension with him in the short term is unlikely to materialize.

In March last year, Sterling clashed with Guardiola in Manchester City's match against Southampton, prompting him to convey a veiled message through the media. Sterling did not appear in the squad for the next game at all, and made few appearances in the remaining important games of the season – except for starting in the Champions League final.

Also last March, City approached Sterling to complete a contract extension with him, but Sterling told them he wasn't ready to commit. He broke up shortly after his breakup with his agent, Aidy Ward, and needed time to take care of his personal and financial affairs.

A source close to Sterling said the club did not like Sterling's attitude and that was why he was suddenly excluded from Guardiola's game plans. But City also understood that Sterling and Guardiola were a bit of a squabble at the time, and that was a factor.

There are some indications that there will indeed be a sudden dissatisfaction among the players in manchester City, such as Guardiola telling the players that they can rest for a while, but saying that the training ground is open, those who are loyal to the team will consciously train and so on...

Sterling arranged a family trip because he didn't want to disappoint the kids, which he believed should not be seen as a sign of his disloyalty to Manchester City. But from Guardiola's perspective, he thinks Sterling is running away: unwilling to talk about contract extensions and not to attend meetings. Given that Guardiola is a workaholic, it's no surprise that he and Sterling are somewhat at odds.

Guardiola famously said a mantra of "don't put a stinky face on me", but Sterling did not like the substitution and brought this emotion into his life off the field, which also affected his consideration of the renewal of his contract.

Guardiola may retort that other players have not shown their dissatisfaction so visiblely, so they have more opportunities to play. Even so, Part of Sterling's selection into the Champions League final was that Guardiola didn't want to lose him, and even when he was most unhappy, Guardiola still believed he could perform at a high level on the pitch.

Sterling's relationship with Guardiola is similar to that of other players with Guardiola, it's a traditional working relationship, not very familiar, but they are well prepared for their own and the team's victory. He also admits that he has learned a lot from the Catalans over the past five and a half years, especially in terms of the tactics of the game.

However, sources familiar with Stirling also revealed that he noticed that some of his teammates had suddenly lost their place in the squad over the past few years. Their mood was severely affected and they ended up either leaving Manchester City or approaching the team. Both Aguero and Bernardo Silva are names mentioned by sources, and while the latter has performed well this season, he did make requests to leave the team last summer.

But there is a compromise attitude that Sterling and B-seat hope to go to the La Liga giants now have little money, except for La Liga, which is Ligue 1, but this means that only Paris Saint-Germain can bear all aspects of their economic conditions. The remaining possibilities are within the Premier League, but he doesn't have much to choose from for Sterling's current conditions.

If Sterling continues to be a regular player this season, there's a real chance he'll renew his contract with Manchester City, but that's still one – let's see the unknowns of what happens next.