Raheem Sterling aiming for Man City improvements ahead of Champions League tie with Real Madrid

City’s last hope of adding more silverware this season comes in Europe

Raheem Sterling is hoping for improvements from his Manchester City side ahead of the resumption of Champions League football.

City have largely been in second gear since the restart, winning some games with ease but falling short in others, most notably in the FA Cup semi-final when both teams had something tangible to play for.

A 4-0 win over Watford last time out was achieved with minimal fuss, but the forward is aiming for better all-round performance levels in the final game of the season, at home to relegated Norwich, before City play Real Madrid next month.

“Anything can happen in football and we are just happy that we’ve another game before that one [against Real Madrid],” he said.

“We’ll try to take as many positives as we can from the game against Watford and the one at the weekend. We’ll try to make the most of it.

“The most important thing is to finish strongly with the game at the weekend. That’s all we can do.

“Prepare right, do the right things and hopefully take that into the Madrid game.”

Sterling scored a brace against Watford which took him to 29 goals for the season across all competitions.

But he’s more focused on the collective than hitting individual milestones as he approaches 30 for the first time in his career.

“The previous season I scored less goals but won more trophies – which is the most important thing, if your goals are contributing to winning trophies. I wouldn’t say it’s my best season.”