Gary Neville has Raheem Sterling theory after ex-Liverpool star's Chelsea statement

Gary Neville has confessed that he could "never agree" with Raheem Sterling's decision to release a statement just before his Chelsea colleagues took to the field.

Sterling was omitted from Chelsea's squad for its Premier League opener, which it lost to reigning champion Manchester City. The former Liverpool winger's representatives issued a statement seeking "clarity" on his future under Enzo Maresca.

The statement also expressed an "expectation" that the Premier League winner would play a role on Sunday. The announcement has drawn significant criticism, with several Chelsea players, including Conor Gallagher, facing uncertain futures.

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Neville criticised Sterling's choice to go public but suggested that perhaps the former England star was raising the alarm due to frustration with the club and its operations. He told Sky Sports: "I can never agree with a player putting a statement out and hour and a half before kick-off because of the fact he's got colleagues and team-mates. Forget the club, forget the manager - it happened once with Wayne Rooney at Man Utd - you're our team-mate so don't distract from what we're doing.

"So I think Raheem probably needs to go and have a chat and say that was poor timing. For Raheem, who I love to bits, he's experienced and if he's looking at things behind the scenes, he must be seeing things he doesn't like and feels like he needs to punch back.

"He might be punching back on behalf of himself, but he may be punching back on behalf of Gallagher, (Trevoh) Chalobah. He might be thinking I've got to alert people to what's going on here, because it is unusual to put a statement out."

Jamie Carragher, however, was quick to challenge the suggestion, insisting that Sterling is focused purely on his own interests and his future after an underwhelming two-year stretch at Stamford Bridge, where his performance has dipped compared to his time at City. Carragher argued emphatically.

The ex-Liverpool player said: "He's not doing that for the team or the dressing room - he's doing that for himself. He's not John Terry or Frank Lampard looking after the club. He's made a mistake, they should just apologize to the manager and get cracking in training."