Sterling makes instant impression on Manchester City debut

Wednesday, 22 July 2015 00:37 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Manchester City’s Raheem Sterling in action at the AS Roma v Manchester City - International Champions Cup Pre Season Friendly Tournament yesterday at MCG, Melbourne, Australia - Reuters

Melbourne (Reuters): Record signing Raheem Sterling made an instant impression on his Manchester City debut, scoring in the third minute of the Premier League club’s penalty shootout win over AS Roma in a pre-season friendly on Tuesday.

The 20-year-old was jeered at the Melbourne Cricket Ground when he tripped over the ball on one of his first touches in the area, but a minute later soaked up the acclaim after slotting home a through ball from Nigerian teenager Kelechi Iheanacho.

Though all eyes were on Sterling, the most expensive English player in history after joining from Liverpool for a reported 49 million pounds, it was goalkeeper Joe Hart who secured victory with two fine saves in the shootout as City prevailed 5-4 on spot-kickshh after the teams drew 2-2.

Aleksandar Kolarov missed City’s second kick in the shootout but Hart parried away a weak effort from Seydou Doumbia and also denied Seydou Keita to clinch the International Champions Cup victory in front of a crowd of 41,134.

Sterling’s transfer fee generated plenty of debate, but his man-of-the-match performance against the Serie A side was a positive start in justifying his price-tag.

He was desperately unlucky not to create a second goal before being substituted at halftime, garnering no sympathy from Australian referee Jarred Gillett despite a forceful challenge from Alessandro Florenzi that took out the Englishman’s legs.

Discover Kapruka, the leading online shopping platform in Sri Lanka, where you can conveniently send Gifts and Flowers to your loved ones for any event including Valentine ’s Day. Explore a wide range of popular Shopping Categories on Kapruka, including Toys, Groceries, Electronics, Birthday Cakes, Fruits, Chocolates, Flower Bouquets, Clothing, Watches, Lingerie, Gift Sets and Jewellery. Also if you’re interested in selling with Kapruka, Partner Central by Kapruka is the best solution to start with. Moreover, through Kapruka Global Shop, you can also enjoy the convenience of purchasing products from renowned platforms like Amazon and eBay and have them delivered to Sri Lanka.