RAHEEM STERLING INSISTS criticism from Liverpool supporters over his refusal to sign a new contract at the club does not bother him as he remains completely focused on his football.
The 20-year-old has sparked much anger on Merseyside in recent weeks by turning down a new six-figure salary package to extend his stay at Anfield, postponing all further talks until the summer and appearing to court interest from Arsenal.
But despite the abuse launched in his direction, Sterling insists he pays no attention as he directs all his energy towards helping Liverpool finish a disappointing season as strongly as possible.
“Everyone has their opinion on me at this moment in time but I’m just a kid who loves to play football and to try and improve every day and be the best I can be,” the England international insisted in an interview screened on BT Sport.
“It just goes in one ear and goes out the other. I don’t read anything, don’t look at anything and, for me, it’s all football. I’m genuinely focused on doing my best for this football club.”
Sterling, who has two years left on his current £35,000-a-week contract at Liverpool, has notched 11 goals and eight assists in 47 appearances in all competitions this season but insists he is not satisfied with his current level of contribution.
“I set targets for myself at the start of the season and I’m probably a few goals behind where I wanted to be,” he added.
“I’m just taking it in my stride and hopefully in these last few games, the run-in until the end of the season, I can kick on again. I’m still learning and developing so only time will tell.
“I’m my own biggest critic. I don’t need anyone to tell me when I’ve played badly. I know when I’ve done bad, I’m always looking where I could have done better or scored an extra goal.
“This is the world that we live in. You look at the players like Ronaldo and these players are critical on themselves. These are the people that you need to idolise and look up to.
“It’s fallen really nicely for me to play at the highest level. From when I signed at Liverpool as a 14 or 15 year old boy, it was my dream to be at Anfield and I was not going anywhere until I’d done that.
“Last season was a great season for everyone at this football club. Obviously we didn’t start the season as well as we would have liked, we’ve definitely shown qualities and the manager has shown us stats from the start of the year and we’ve probably been one of the better teams in the league.”
