Wenger: No sympathy for Liverpool over Sterling deal
Arsene Wenger has said he has "no sympathy" for Liverpool over their sale of Raheem Sterling, who he believes will do well at Manchester City.
Sterling secured an initial £44million move to Manchester City in July after months of speculation in which the England international's conduct was called into question.
The winger refused to sign a new contract at Anfield, and held an interview with the BBC - not sanctioned by the club - where he insisted he was not a "money-grabbing teenager".
Liverpool suffered a similar fallout with Luis Suarez before his eventual move to Barcelona in 2014, with Arsenal famously submitting a £40,000,001 bid for the Uruguayan the summer before.
This was thought to be the fee to trigger a clause in Suarez's contract, but Liverpool refused to sell to their Premier League rivals regardless, a move which has left Wenger with "no sympathy" for the Reds over their sale of Sterling.
"Liverpool is in a position they can make their own decisions," he told reporters. "They refused to sell us Suarez, so I cannot feel too much sympathy for them."
Wenger also defended the actions of Sterling in securing his move, while stating his belief that the 20-year-old will perform well at Manchester City.
"I personally rate Raheem Sterling. We will see that in the longer term. I personally don't think that Sterling was making a lot of drama. It's just during the transfer window that that happened.
"During the season, the boy was quiet - never made any stupid statement. I don't think he made too much noise. He's a quality player. They bought Firmino. We will see what he will produce. He is a similar player.
"But let's remember, two years ago with Suarez, Sturridge, Sterling, they scored over a hundred goals. To score more than a hundred goals in the Premier League, you need special quality, and Sterling was part of that."
