Raheem Sterling has strongly divided opinion and written headlines for various reasons - some more trivial than others - throughout the entirety of his career, but he put himself on the back pages for all the right reasons last weekend by scoring Man City's opener in their 2-0 victory over Arsenal. 

In vintage fashion Sterling collected the ball on the left side of the area and shimmied inside past two Arsenal players before slamming the ball into the back of the net past a statuesque Peter Cech. The celebration which followed saw Sterling point to his ear to ask the stunned Arsenal crowd where his multitude of critics had temporarily gone hiding.

His instant impact within the opening minutes of City's title defence served to prove quite how important he is to one of the greatest outfit's English football has ever bore witness to.

But his rising importance and marked improvement since joining the club in 2015 has not yet resulted in the awarding of a new contract, and that must change in the coming months if City want to continue to set the standard in the Premier League.

In the aftermath of City's 2-0 victory Guardiola admitted that the club "would like Raheem to stay" and implied that a new deal could be on the horizon, as per the Daily Telegraph.

And considering the British media have a recurring habit of stirring up controversy in relation to Sterling's life away from the field of play, the club would be wise to agree fresh terms over a new contract as soon as possible.

If Sterling (valued at £81 million by Transfermarkt) does not sign a new contract in the immediate future it's likely that unwanted rumours will begin to emerge regarding his desire to stay at the club which could potentially disrupt City's title defence.

Sterling's electric performances during Guardiola's stint at the club so far have been a consistently positive feature of City's attacking play and there's no doubt he warrants a new bumper deal, so the hierarchy should convince him to put pen to paper as soon as possible to ensure the club have the best possible chance of retaining their Premier League crown.

Man City fans - thoughts? Let us know below!