Raheem Sterling has been a revelation for Manchester City this season. 

The Englishman has become a key part of Pep Guardiola's side, scoring a number of important late goals already in the Premier League. 

He netted in the dying moments against Bournemouth, Huddersfield Town and Southampton, helping turn one point into three from each of those games, putting City top of the table. 

In fact, he has nine goals and two assists from 13 matches in the league, making him one of the most valuable players in England.

But just last summer he was fighting to save his career in Manchester. It's reported that Arsenal were close to signing the forward as he fell out of favour with Guardiola. 

Had he moved to the Emirates, Sterling may not be in such fine form, chasing his first Premier League and Champions League titles. 

And although the prospect of signing the 22-year-old would no doubt have excited Gunners fans, in an interview this weekend, Sterling has revealed why he would never join Arsenal.  

"I’m happy at Man City," he told the Daily Mail, before revealing that he would like to play abroad one day. 

"Nobody knows what the future brings so one day, definitely, it would be nice to play abroad. It would be a great experience."  

But when asked about moving to London, Sterling gave a bizarre reason as to why he will always turn down a move south. 

"Nah, can’t be in London. I can’t be near my friends. They got to stay down there."

It's a pretty odd reason to rule out a move to a number of big clubs should they be interested in signing him in the future. 

But, as he's playing so well in Manchester, Guardiola will be more than happy that it appears Sterling is fully concentrated on his football, rather than making any more friends.