Even seven years after he and Liverpool decided to go their separate ways, Raheem Sterling is still a name that provokes an interesting reaction from Liverpool supporters.
It was seven years ago this month that the forward finally got his wish to quit the Reds to join Manchester City in a then-English record transfer, which cost the Citizens £49m. In truth, it must be said, the deal which was orchestrated by manager Manuel Pellegrini and City officials - with help from Three Lions team-mate Joe Hart, which seemed like a hefty fee at the time - will no doubt go down as one of the finest business transactions the Etihad has ever seen following his 131-goal return.
Following the completion of his move to Manchester, the 27-year-old acknowledged his ambition to accumulate a haul of trophies as the major motivation behind his decision to leave Liverpool, the club joined in 2010 aged 15, not his financial desires.
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“It’s a good feeling and a really happy time for me and my family,” said Sterling at the time. “I’m just glad it’s all over and done with and I can’t wait to get on the training field. Things have come really fast in the last couple of years.
“I’ve just had to learn to take it all in my stride but I never imagined I’d be at this point at the age I am now and breaking a British transfer record fee … the world-class players that are here and a squad that are capable of winning things year in, year out. The more quality players that are around you, the more quality it brings out in you so I can’t wait to get started and play alongside them.”
Despite his unknown intentions with such words, Sterling's comments had ensured the knife had been firmly twisted into the backs of those on Merseyside immediately after completing his move away. And given the way events had played out in the final weeks and months of his time at Anfield, it seemed a departure was the best solution for all parties.
It was the summer of 2015 and Liverpool, led by Brendan Rodgers, were entering a defining period of the Northern Irishman's tenure. Having waved goodbye to Anfield icon Steven Gerrard at the end of the previous campaign following a dismal 6-1 defeat to Stoke City, Rodgers knew his remaining time at the club could be short and sweet and therefore looked to strengthen the quality in his ranks ahead of the 2015/16 curtain-raiser.
James Milner was signed on a free transfer from City, ending his five-year stay at the Etihad, promising young defender Joe Gomez was snapped up from Charlton and Roberto Firmino and Christian Benteke were added to the forward department in what were just a few examples of the Reds' promising deals over the summer months.
Obviously, if Liverpool had any hopes of upsetting the Premier League's Champions League applecart on a permanent basis, keeping hold of Sterling's indisputable talents, which had seen him graduate from the Academy to become one of the Reds' key men, would be fundamental to Rodgers' aims to wrestle back some confidence on Merseyside.
Having been handed his debut by Rodgers' predecessor, Kenny Dalglish, in the early months of 2012 after a catalogue of eye-catching performances at youth level, Sterling cemented himself as a permanent fixture in the senior side during the 2012/13 campaign. Yet he would really announce his arrival to the rest of Europe the following season as he, along with Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge, almost single-handedly fired Liverpool to the promised land of Premier League glory.
Rodgers had become accustomed to dealing with the disappointment of losing star players after brilliant individual campaigns in a stuttering Liverpool side and when Suarez became the latest to depart during the summer of 2014, in search of pastures new after his astonishing 31-goal haul in the Premier League, the Northern Irishman was left scarce of quality in the final third.
Any hope of Liverpool sustaining back-to-back title bids, even just weeks after the season's end, looked bleak.
Anfield officials had originally tried to prevent Sterling from treading a similar path to Suarez, and even before him Fernando Torres, with a big exit away from the club during his prime. Therefore they swiftly opened contract talks with the youngster and his notorious agent, Aidy Ward, in October 2014.
His contract - which had been signed in December 2012, after his promotion to the first team - saw the then 18-year-old receive a handsome boost to his earnings as his previous wage of £2,000 increased by roughly £38,000 making him one of the highest earners for his age in Europe. However, Rodgers was quick to support the pay packet Liverpool had approved for a player with less than 25 Premier League appearances.
"It was just making sure that we take care in terms of the financial - but also the football - plan for the player," said the Liverpool manager. "This was about a young player who has rocketed from playing in the youth teams and the reserves into becoming a full England international.
"A lot has happened in his young life and it was just about making sure that there was that protection for him going forward - both in his financial situation and his football plan.
"I have always been confident that this was going to be the best place for him and thankfully the kid is very focused and devoted to Liverpool."
So by the time October 2014 came around, with Sterling's importance having risen exponentially, affirmed by his inclusion in England's 2014 World Cup squad, Rodgers, Liverpool CEO Ian Ayre, Ward and Sterling entered talks about the possibility of improving his terms on Merseyside with his current £40,000 per-week package running until June 2017.
Though those talks were quick to reach an impasse with Liverpool's reported offer of a £100,000 per-week deal being rebuffed by the England international and his broker, Ward. Months later, Sterling would break the telling silence on his future in an interview with the BBC , in which he revealed his reasonings for not signing the mouth-watering deal that Liverpool had lined up in the boardrooms of Melwood.
“It’s not about the money at all," said Sterling. "Never once in my life has it been about money. I talk about winning trophies throughout my career. I don’t talk about how many cars I’m going to drive or how many houses I’ve got. I just purely want to be the best I can be.”
He added: “I don’t want to be perceived as a money-grabbing 20-year-old. I want to be seen as a 20-year-old kid who loves playing football and doing his best for the team. I never want the fans to think bad of me but it has been too much for me this season with everyone talking about it and I just want to get through this season and be part of want we want to achieve.”
The Reds were said to have been left furious by Sterling's decision to conduct an interview the club knew nothing about, until just moments before it was aired by the BBC. Seemingly seeking to set the record straight about his motivations and rationale ahead of potentially not signing a new contract, his choice of actions, no doubt ill-informed by Ward, appeared to be a well-calculated move in a bid to get Liverpool to bow to his reported £150,000 per-week demands and failing to do so, draw up interest away from Anfield.
Though the execution had miserably failed in its attempt to protect Sterling's reputation among Liverpool supporters.
Three months later he move to Manchester City in 2015, with Sterling signing a contract thought to be worth a remarkable £200,000 per week.
And it seems that even though Liverpool fans will have no long-lasting gratitude to Sterling even seven years after his contentious Anfield exit, the club themselves have benefited from their involvement in such a saga.
Liverpool's strict wage structure put in place at Anfield has served them well over the years and especially under Jurgen Klopp. Since the German succeeded Rodgers at Anfield in October 2015, the Reds have, with the help of former sporting director Michael Edwards, constantly been the success story when it comes to incomings and contract renewals.
Emre Can became the first to find that out in 2018 as his contract on Merseyside edged towards expiration and he clearly had his own value he thought his services were worth, but they appeared far greater than what Liverpool had been prepared to pay.
Reports at the time suggested Liverpool's system had a £75,000 limit on signings that were not deemed marquee ones and Can's desire for a package close to the £160,000 Philippe Coutinho was earning, was deemed far too pricey. Other reports suggested that the midfielder had been keen to have a release clause inserted in his contract and that was the reason the German and the club reached a stalemate in talks. Again, Liverpool refused to budge.
More recently, during the summer of 2020, the Reds' long-standing interest in Timo Werner cooled pretty swiftly as they reportedly refused to bow to certain wage demands due to the financial uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus pandemic. Chelsea made their move early in the window and Liverpool withdrew from the race, later signing Diogo Jota from Wolves to supplement their attack.
Gini Wijnaldum departed Anfield 12 months later after he and Anfield officials failed to agree on a new contract, and although the stumbling blocks of those particular discussions have not yet been made public, Liverpool clearly weren't ready to meet the Dutchman's demands, however important he may have been.
And when Darwin Nunez was brought in for what could end up being a club-record fee of £85m, Reds officials were quick to stress that his wage demands were more in keeping with the likes of Jota or Luis Diaz, rather than the club's highest earners like Mohamed Salah.
With Sadio Mane leaving the club, another high earner was off the wage bill and, along with Divock Origi, gave the Reds some more breathing room in their wage bill.
This financial discipline has ensured Liverpool had a strong bargaining position when it came to negotiations over Salah's new deal.
The Egyptian and his agent Ramy Abbas will have known that the Reds aren't the type of club to hand over whatever their players want and instead negotiate with the intention of protecting the club as well as any of their playing staff.
And yes, that meant a protracted negotiation, often played out in the press as speculation continued to mount about Salah's future. But it also meant that an agreement was possible and that, ultimately, both sides were able to come to a compromise.
Indeed, it was during these talks that Liverpool came to an agreement on a highly incentivised deal that could go about £400,000 should Salah continue scoring and bringing the club success at the rate he has done so in the five years he's been with the club so far. A price the Reds will happily pay to keep competing for the game's top prizes.
In that scenario, everyone's a winner.
And so the Reds might want to thank Raheem Sterling and his agent for teaching them a valuable lesson in negotiations as they celebrate three more years of Salah.
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