Wednesday 3 August 2016 14:40, UK
Leroy Sane arrives at Manchester City on the back of a season remarkably similar to Raheem Sterling's final term at Liverpool. Pep Guardiola's challenge will be to ensure the German doesn't stall in the same way the England forward has done…
"He is a young player with outstanding ability and I'm sure the Manchester City fans will be very excited about seeing him in action."
Those words could easily have been spoken by Pep Guardiola, following City's capture of £37m Germany wonderkid Leroy Sane from Schalke on Tuesday. But it's actually a quote from Manuel Pellegrini from last summer, when the Chilean was eagerly looking forward to unleashing the newly purchased Raheem Sterling in a sky blue shirt.
After a drawn out transfer saga, City splashed £49m on the then-20-year-old Sterling, investing in the seemingly huge potential of a player who had thrilled Liverpool fans with his prodigious performances in the Premier League.
What followed was a frustrating season for player, management and fans alike, as Sterling struggled to recreate the moments of magic which had made him a key figure in Brendan Rodgers' Liverpool team.
Sterling's first Premier League season in Manchester City colours yielded just six goals and two assists from 31 appearances, with three of those strikes coming in a single game against Bournemouth.
It was the worst season of his fledgling career in terms of goals and assists per minute and Sky Sports' Jamie Redknapp described his return as "a big disappointment".
Worse was to come. Sterling's season culminated in a disastrous Euro 2016, in which he was hooked at half-time against Wales and dropped against Slovakia before returning to Roy Hodgson's XI for the humiliating defeat to Iceland.
Shorn of confidence and heavily criticised, Sterling's standing has taken a significant hit over the past 12 months. With the arrival of Sane, he could well find his first-team opportunities at Manchester City limited, too.
There is a buzz around the club's new signing. Guardiola has called Sane a "huge talent" and former Liverpool and City midfielder Dietmar Hamann reckons his compatriot provides direct competition to Sterling for a starting spot alongside Kevin de Bruyne, David Silva and Sergio Aguero in attack.
"Raheem Sterling has pretty much stalled since he went to Manchester City," Hamann told Sky Sports News HQ. "He's never shown the promise he showed at Liverpool earlier in his career, so I think Sterling will be the one who needs to pick it up."
Interestingly, Sane arrives at the Etihad on the back of a season remarkably similar to Sterling's 2014/15 campaign with Liverpool.
Both Sterling and Sane turned 20 midway through the season prior to their City move, both returned a combined total of 14 goals and assists and both recorded near identical numbers for frequency of shots and dribbles.
Essentially, Manchester City have signed the German version of Raheem Sterling of 12 months ago.
Guardiola has publicly backed the England international, saying: "I want to help him a lot… and show him how good a player he is." And there's undoubtedly an onus on the manager to make sure the club get more from their £49m investment this season than they did last.
But in identifying where Sterling struggled, Guardiola will also stand a greater chance of ensuring Sane settles better than his new team-mate did.
Sterling has described his first season with Manchester City as a "massive learning curve", pointing to the mental battle of dealing with the pressure of a large price tag and the physical demands Premier League and Champions League football makes on a young player.
I know I will learn a lot under Guardiola and now I can take the next step in my career.
The good news for Sane is that, in Guardiola, he has a manager renowned for his work with young players. Lionel Messi, Pedro, Gerard Pique and Sergio Busquets were all 21 or younger when he took the reins at Barcelona. David Alaba, Juan Bernat and Kingsley Coman all thrived under the Spaniard at Bayern Munich.
"One of the reasons I decided to join City was Pep Guardiola; he convinced me to come here and that I can continue to progress," Sane said on completion of his move. "I know I will learn a lot under him and now I can take the next step in my career.
"I followed Pep at Barcelona and at Bayern where he achieved a lot and worked really well with young players. I think he can make me a more complete player."
That progression is not necessarily straightforward, as Sterling's first season at Manchester City has shown. But with Guardiola at the helm, both Sane and Sterling go into the new season optimistic of improvement. Now it's up to the Spanish boss to maximise their potential.
