Giovanni van Bronckhorst has said on Stadium Astro that Raheem Sterling has become a better player since leaving Liverpool for Manchester City.
Sterling, who can play as an attacking midfielder or as a winger, joined City from Liverpool in the summer of 2015 for an initial transfer fee reported by BBC Sport to be worth £44 million.
Brendan Rodgers, now in charge of Leicester City, was the manager of Liverpool at the time.
Former Arsenal and Barcelona star van Bronckhorst believes that the move to City has been good for Sterling, adding that the 26-year-old England international is now a complete footballer.
The Dutchman made the comments while reflecting on Sterling’s performance against Arsenal in the Premier League game on Sunday in which he scored the only goal.
Van Bronckhorst said about Sterling on Stadium Astro: “For him the move to City was a good one for him because he gets the confidence of the coach, especially the last years of Pep.”
The Dutchman added: “He was already good, but now he understands the game, he understands what he has to bring to the team, offensively also defensively.”
Van Bronckhorst continued: “He is a complete player, and he made the difference not in this game but so many games also in recent years.”
Developing under Pep Guardiola
Sterling was quite young when he left Liverpool for City, but he had a lot of potential and he is fulfilling that now.
The 26-year-old has developed a lot under City manager Pep Guardiola and has taken his game to another level.
The England international scores goals, creates chances, and invokes fear in the opposition defenders.
During his time at City so far, Sterling has won the Premier League title twice, the FA Cup once and the EFL Cup on three occasions.
Sterling has scored nine goals and provided five assists in the Premier League, and has scored one goal and provided two assists in the Champions League for City so far this season, according to WhoScored.
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