Records not on Sterling´s mind as Manchester City keep on winning

Raheem Sterling says breaking records is not on the minds of the Manchester City players following their 1-0 victory over Newcastle United on Wednesday.

The Premier League leaders stretched their advantage at the top of the table to 15 points with their 18th victory in a row in the top flight, thanks to Sterling’s 31st-minute strike at St. James’ Park.

Victory over Crystal Palace on New Year’s Eve will see City match the record of 19 wins in a row in Europe’s top-flight leagues, set by Pep Guardiola’s Bayern Munich in the 2013-14 season.

Sterling, however, says Guardiola’s current charges are focused solely on amassing points to take them closer to the title.

“No one’s thinking of the record,” he told Sky Sports. “Of course, it’s nice to have on your CV, but we need to keep winning and that’s the most important thing. The record will only stand for a certain amount of time.

“I though they soaked up the pressure really well and tried to counter-attack us a few times. We gave away silly free-kicks and put the pressure on ourselves at times.

“It just shows the team spirit, how we dug in and stayed together, stayed calm and got the win.”

11 – Manchester City have now won 11 consecutive away top-flight matches, equalling the record set by Chelsea in December 2008. Unstoppable. pic.twitter.com/1Qhl00dHN5

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 27, 2017

Sterling’s goal came from a fine pass from Kevin De Bruyne and Sterling admits City are blessed with a number of creative players who can create opportunities at will.

“It’s really good. We’ve got quite a few players in the team who can find a pass. You’ve just got to make the run and, nine times out of 10, they’ll find you,” he said.

Midfielder Bernardo Silva was pleased with the way City played against an ultra-defensive Newcastle but insists the title race remains alive.

“It isn’t [over],” said the Portugal international. “We’re still in December. We have to play the second round with the same spirit and the same hunger to win the games.

“We knew it would be a tough game. We played well in the first half but it’s not easy to play against a team with 11 players behind the ball. 

“But we handled it. Of course, in the last 10 minutes it was hard to keep the advantage but we did it.

“When you win 18 games in a row, you have to expect teams will do whatever they can to try to stop you. We have to keep working the same way we have since the start of the season.”