Liverpool Transfer News: Raheem Sterling Exit Imminent, Confirms Brendan Rodgers

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has confirmed that the club have accepted an offer for Raheem Sterling and the player will leave Anfield this summer.

The England international is widely expected to join Manchester City, and although the Reds boss did not confirm the identity of the club in question while addressing the media in Bangkok as part of Liverpool's pre-season tour, he did admit Sterling would be joining a new team subject to a medical, per James Pearce of the Liverpool Echo:

According to Sky Sports, Manchester City have agreed a £49 million fee for the player, putting an end to one of the most storied transfer sagas of the summer.

Jon Super/Associated Press

Indeed, as noted by Jamie Jackson of the Guardian, the 20-year-old is said to have told Rodgers that the main reason he wants to leave Anfield is because of the Reds boss.

But the Liverpool manager insisted there has been no breakdown in the relationship between himself and the player:

If the £49 million transfer does indeed go ahead, it’ll be one of the biggest in the history of the Premier League.

Sterling is rightly revered as one of the game’s top young talents, and given the inflated value which accompanies deals involving English players, an extortionate fee was always going to be needed to prise the winger away from Merseyside.

Kirsty Wigglesworth/Associated Press

The Reds have already made some signings that will have excited the Anfield faithful and aided in moving on from the sorry Sterling soap opera. But Rodgers gave little away when pressed on the prospect of other acquisitions:

However, the Northern Irishman did express his delight at the purchases made by the club so far in this window before emphasising the importance of a team ethic, per Sky Sports:

"

It was important to improve and build the squad. We are very pleased with the players we've brought in.

The key for us is the overall team. Individuals like Raheem will have benefited from the team. We aim to be much stronger and more competitive than we were last season, and we're relying on everyone.

"

Sakchai Lalit/Associated Press

There won’t only be fresh faces on the field for Liverpool this season either. Supporting the Liverpool boss in the 2015-16 campaign will be Sean O’Driscoll as assistant manager and Pepijn Lijnders as a first-team coach, replacing Colin Pascoe and Mike Marsh.

It was a decision Rodgers claimed was his own with a different impetus in mind:

All parties will be delighted when the Sterling transfer is complete. There has been speculation surrounding the youngster’s future for months, and the manner in which the deal has been handled will leave something of a sour taste.

But Liverpool will receive a large fee, and City look set to get an exciting young talent. Both sides should come away delighted.

For Rodgers, the focus will now shift toward amalgamating a new-look Liverpool squad. With an influx of new players and a change in coaching staff, there is likely to be a period of transition, but given the tepid manner in which the Reds finished the 2014-15 season, it’s vital that it’s a limited one if the manager is to stave off early external pressure.