Raheem Sterling has revealed there are no hard feelings between himself and Liverpool after making a much-publicised move from Merseyside to Manchester City this summer.
Sterling transferred to the Etihad club for £49 million in July after frequent criticism of his perceived poor handling of his Liverpool exit. However in an interview with the Guardian on Friday, the Jamaican-born Sterling stated the vociferous disapproval came only from those outside of the club.
"When everything was going on and it was in the papers every day, everyone at Liverpool was top-notch. I spoke to the manager every day. I spoke to all the players," Sterling told the paper.
"Everyone outside the club made it out as being something really bad but there was no problem with the manager or the other players. The manager even invited me over to his house to talk. It wasn't anything like as bad as people made out."
The England international caused a stir after his now-infamous interview with the BBC, in which he insisted he was not a "money-grabbing 20-year-old."
In hindsight, he says the strong backlash that followed was difficult to endure.
"I don't regret doing the interview because it was frustrating hearing some of the stories about myself and some of the silly money people said I was supposedly rejecting, when it was nothing like that," Sterling said. "I just wanted to get my point across but probably there was a better way I could have done it.
"After that, I wouldn't wish it on anyone; all the negativity that came through. It was difficult for me. I don't mind bad press when it is about football because hopefully you can do something to put it right. It just felt towards the end [at Liverpool] it was a bit personal. People developed this perception of me and it was shocking to find the way that some people viewed me."
Sterling, in the end, expressed satisfaction with his new club, despite the controversy his move might have caused.
"I remember my first day here after signing," he said. "I was driving in thinking: 'This is the place, this is the place you want to work every day.'"