Raheem Sterling insists he would have signed a new Liverpool deal last year - for LESS money.

The 20-year-old England star has so far turned down all of the Reds' offers of a new contract amidst mounting speculation he may leave in the summer.

Sterling has got two years left on his current £35,000-a-week deal, which Liverpool offered to extend at around £90,000-per-week.

Boss Brendan Rodgers suggested earlier this season that the club had made an "incredible" offer to Sterling, an offer that was turned down.

And the man himself has now revealed that had a similar - or lower - offer been forthcoming last season he would have signed it.

"If, at that point in time, I was offered a contract, I most definitely would have signed straight away, probably for far less money than being said now," he told the BBC. "I just think the timing was a bit off."

Raheem Sterling: Career in pictures

Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Manchester City and now Arsenal are all monitoring Sterling's situation closely but he is just trying to keep such talk to the back of his mind.

"I try to kill it off, but I don't think the public can see it that way," Sterling said. "I think they just see it as this 20-year-old boy being greedy.

"I just want to take the time to think about what I've achieved in my career so far, where I need to go and what I need to do to get better as a player."

City will test Liverpool’s resolve with a big bid when the transfer window opens at the end of the season.

But Arsenal are also serious contenders and have made discreet enquiries about Sterling’s availability.

They would be ready to make a player who has been used as a wing-back at Liverpool in recent weeks central to their plans.

Analysis

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