Man City hoping Sterling proves a sound investment

Manchester City's Raheem Sterling (L) looks at the ball as he takes a shot at a goal and scores against Vietnam during a friendly soccer match at My Dinh stadium in Hanoi, Vietnam, July 27, 2015. REUTERS/Kham

LONDON (Reuters) - Demonised as a caricature of the highly-paid modern-day footballer whose ego dwarfs his talent, Raheem Sterling will have few fans when the Premier League begins next weekend.

Unless, of course, you support Manchester City who made the 20-year-old forward the most expensive English player in history when they paid a fee of up to 49 million pounds to end his increasingly toxic relationship with Liverpool.