Raheem Sterling should take a leaf out of Wayne Rooney’s book, says Dennis Tueart

RAHEEM STERLING’S £49m move to Manchester City has the enthusiastic backing of club legend Dennis Tueart.

Tueart is in the unique position of having also been City’s record signing AND having served as a club director with the responsibility for buying players.

He describes the England forward’s protracted move to the Etihad as “smiles all round.”

However, the 65-year-old does sound one note of warning.

He believes that now the deal is done, Sterling’s controversial agent Aidy Ward must keep the player on the straight and narrow off the field.

“It’s a great signing, and Liverpool should be smiling too because they’ll end up with £40m after QPR get their cut,” says Tueart.

“I have no problems with the fee. There’s a premium on English players and it’s market value.

“Contracts signed now will overlap into the new TV deal and that’s factored into salaries and fees.

“Raheem has great potential. What we don’t know is if those issues off the field last season were blown out of proportion, or whether they are part of his real personality.

“City’s biggest job is to make sure that they help him develop his potential.

“But they can only do so much. Sterling’s agent and advisors must do their bit.

“When I was a director at City, I used to point at the gates of the training ground and tell agents that inside those gates, the club would look after the player.

“Outside, it’s up to you.

“Raheem has to be careful what company he keeps. The press and social media will be all over him. It’s up to his advisors to steer him right.

“He is just 20. The big question is this. Is he 20 going on 18 or 20 going on 25?

“In some ways it reminds me of Wayne Rooney’s move to United.

“He was young and had off-the-field issues to sort out too.

“But Wayne turned that around and showed he’s a focused individual. Raheem should take a leaf out of his book.”

Tueart, who left the club in 2007 following Thaksin Shinawatra’s takeover, will watch the new man’s progress from his private box at the Etihad.

He recognises the similarities between Sterling and the young winger who left Sunderland for Maine Road in March, 1974.

“I was City’s record signing at £275,000, but was just pipped for the British record because Bob Latchford had moved to Everton from Birmingham a few weeks earlier,” the man who won six England caps recalls.

“When I got the ball, my instinct was to get past the player in front of me. I believe that Raheem is the same.

“I like his mobility. That’s what causes defenders problems.

“I like his directness, too. All these possession stats drive me barmy.

“With James Milner, you would always get a seven or eight-out-of-10 performance.

“You’d never get a four or a five, but you’d also rarely get a nine. Sterling can win a game on his own. He can be a nine or a 10.

“You also have to look at the signing globally because commercial revenue outside the UK is unbelievable these days.

“The owners will consider how much value it will add to their brands in New York and Melbourne, and how it will

benefit their sponsors and partners.”