If Liverpool Sell Raheem Sterling, It Cannot Be to Manchester United

Wednesday night saw reports emerge suggesting that Manchester United had become the first club to officially enquire about wantaway Liverpool striker Raheem Sterling.

Given that no player has transferred between the two north-west rivals since 1964, this is clearly a transfer that is never going to happen.

The reports of United's interest in Sterling arrived from all the Merseyside-based correspondents, such as the Telegraph's Chris Bascombe, who wrote that "Manchester United have lit the fuse on what will be the transfer saga of the summer by contacting Liverpool to express interest in signing Raheem Sterling."

Jon Super/Associated Press

Bascombe, like his colleagues, reported that Liverpool rebuffed the inquiry, "making it clear that they have no wish to sell the 20-year-old and would certainly never do business with United."

The Sterling situation has echoes of the problems Liverpool had with Luis Suarez two years ago, when the Uruguayan attempted to engineer a move away from Anfield, prompting an infamous bid of £40million plus £1 from Arsenal.

Liverpool refused to be bullied by Suarez and his agent, though, retaining him at the club, agreeing a new deal and thus ensuring they got maximum value for the player when he departed for Barcelona 12 months later.

Reports now suggest owners Fenway Sports Group will take the same hard stance with Sterling and his agent, Aidy Ward.  Andy Hunter explains in the Guardian:

"

FSG is willing to take the same hard-line stance it adopted with Suárez in 2013 should Sterling refuse to sign a contract extension and keep the winger on his current £35,000-a-week deal. Sterling is under contract at Liverpool until 2017 and the club’s owners are prepared to retain the player on his existing terms until next summer – costing him more than £3m in lost wages given his rejection of a £100,000-a-week contract – should the impasse continue. It would take a vastly inflated offer to test FSG’s resolve.

"

There are even suggestions that FSG are prepared to refuse Sterling's request to leave the club and keep him at Anfield even if a new deal isn't agreed.

Sterling is currently on £35,000 per week, with Liverpool reportedly having offered £100,000 per week several months ago, per Bascombe in the Telegraph.

That means Sterling is missing out on £65,000 per week, as explained by James Pearce of the Liverpool Echo in a live blog on Thursday.

"They could keep doing that for the next two years and then get a compensation fee when his current deal expires," writes Pearce.

"

Cease contract negotiations with Sterling & Ward. Drop him on Sunday. Leave him on 35k. Tell to come back when they want to behave! #LFC

— Jay (@Jay82_LFC) May 21, 2015"

That would be £6.7 million over two years that Sterling would miss out on. If Sterling's agent is meant to be protecting his client's best interests, then he should be advising him to sign a new deal, get his head down and be quiet. Words that were expressed by Jamie Carragher earlier this week.

"For a 20-year-old kid to be taking on Liverpool Football Club over a contract, to the pit of my stomach that just winds me up, it angers me," Carragher told Sky Sports' Monday Night Football. "You keep your mouth shut—get on with playing football."

Instead, Sterling's agent reportedly told the London Evening Standard that Sterling would not sign a new deal even if were £900,000 per week.

"I don’t care about the PR of the club and the club situation. I don’t care," he is quoted saying.

"He is definitely not signing. He’s not signing for £700, £800, £900 thousand a week. He is not signing.

"My job is to make sure I do the best with them (my clients). If people say I am bad at my job, or they are badly advised it does not matter."

Ward has since denied the quotes, per Sky Sports, but the damage has already been done.

This whole saga has seen Ward and Sterling go from one PR disaster to another, with the ill-advised and unauthorised interview with BBC Sport the height of naivety. 

United's Interest

Stu Forster/Getty Images

Returning to Man United's reported interest in Sterling, this is something that isn't worth entertaining.

Liverpool will only sell Sterling if they get a substantial figure—"It would have to be around the £45m/£50m mark for Liverpool to even consider it," according to Pearce—but they certainly wouldn't sell to their fiercest rivals.

FSG are smart businessmen, they will not risk upsetting the fanbase by selling Sterling to United, it's that simple.

Furthermore, no player has transferred directly between United and Liverpool since Phil Chisnall in 1964, with only Gabriel Heinze coming close to crossing the divide in 2007.

Quite why United would have an interest in Sterling is puzzling, especially since they just signed Memphis Depay—a player of similar age, technical attributes and positioning.

Perhaps it could be the case that United's inquiry for Sterling was nothing more than an unsettling tactic.

Either way, Sterling won't be making the short trip across the M62 to Old Trafford this summer.