Manchester City have turned down a €25 million approach from Chelsea for Raheem Sterling

According to Fabrizio Romano, Chelsea is “increasing in confidence about signing Manchester City‘s Raheem Sterling, but that confidence doesn’t seem to extend to the bargaining table, as City rejected our opening bid of €25 million (plus add-ons).

That’s not a surprising outcome given City’s recent request for £50-60 million for the 27-year-old, but it’s a good starting point for determining an eventual fee. We’ve got a couple more rounds to go till we reach £35 million, according to reports from earlier this weekend. (Other stories have stated that no formal negotiations have yet begun, although this may be old news.)

Chelsea will “come back with a new bid shortly,” according to Romano, who also claims that City is “clearly open to this move at the right price.” You’d think that Sterling’s desire to depart before the end of his contract would offer City little power, but if funds become an issue, they can always fabricate a couple of new sponsorships, so those standard considerations may not apply.