<a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/tags/chelsea-fc/" target="_blank">Chelsea</a> recruit Raheem Sterling has admitted he was left "fuming" and "raging" by how his glittering Manchester City career ended. The England forward moved to Stamford Bridge this summer in a deal worth £50 million, having won four Premier League titles, four League Cups, and one FA Cup during seven years at <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/tags/manchester-city/" target="_blank">City</a>, scoring 131 goals in 339 appearances. In his final season at the Etihad Stadium, the 27-year-old appeared 30 times in City's title-winning campaign but just 23 of those were starts, prompting Sterling to make his move. "Everyone wants to feel wanted, football is no different," Sterling told Sky Sports ahead of Chelsea's<i> </i>trip to Leeds United on Sunday. "When you play your heart out, sacrifice some of your kids' birthdays, and then get treated in a certain way, it's disappointing. "At the time I was fuming, raging, but it's gone, it's in the past and I can only focus on the present, which is now, here at Chelsea, and the opportunity I've got here to go out and showcase my talents once again." He says "misunderstandings, contracts running down" were some of the factors behind him leaving City. "It was a shame to see how it ended in the end because I had such a great time there," he added. "A lot of things came into play, a lot of reasons, but I wasn't complaining, I was ready to challenge and, as you can see, even with some of the performances I put in, you couldn't guarantee yourself a place so it just didn't make sense to fight a battle you can never win." The switch to the Blues saw Sterling become the first marquee signing of new owner Todd Boehly's era at Stamford Bridge, and the forward said the fact they were delivering on promises convinced him. "It was their intent, how they approached me," Sterling added. "I wasn't listening to promises, I was seeing action and I think that was one of the factors that made me really consider the football club, the way they showed me how important a role I could have here. "If you are not happy playing your football you've got to look at other options to get that happiness back, and that's exactly what I have done. "It [City] is a fantastic club, it's a club that wins lots of trophies, it's a club that has helped my development massively in the past couple of years, but there comes a time when you've got to think about yourself, what's best for yourself, and what you want for the future. That's the sole reason why I am here." Pictures of Sterling and the Chelsea stars training for the Leeds match can be seen in the gallery above. To view the next image, just swipe.
