Sterling will set the world stage alight : Hart

(Reuters) – Manchester City new recruit Raheem Sterling may not have justified his price tag yet but team mate Joe Hart has no doubts that the 20-year-old winger will go on to “set the world stage alight”.

Sterling cost City 49 million pounds ($75.29 million), making him the most expensive English player ever, but is yet to have any significant impact on the Sky Blues’ season scoring twice in 10 appearances.

Sterling came under heavy criticism for his controversial exit from Liverpool, with reports claiming he was reluctant to travel for the Merseyside club’s pre-season matches in Asia and Australia.

Hart said Sterling does not let the criticism affect his performances on the pitch.

“Raheem never shows that the pressure from City or England supporters is getting to him — it’s pretty obvious when you’re around him,” Hart told reporters.

“It was a tough time in the media and from the outside before his move but he was perfectly fine and very excited to start his new chapter at Manchester City.”

“He has coped with it really well. He is an excellent player, a really good person. He is someone who has at least 10-15 years left in football and to set the world stage alight,” added the goalkeeper.

(Reporting by Shravanth Vijayakumar in Bengaluru; editing by Amlan Chakraborty)