Manchester City forward Raheem Sterling hit back at the media criticism he has received as the English press follow every detail of his life, taking to Instagram to express his frustrations at the stories.

Naturally as a professional footballer every decision you make both on the pitch and away from the football will be scrutinised greatly by the media and none more so than the tabloid media of the UK.

Another week and yet again there is another article detailing some irrelevant element of Raheem Sterling's life. Since Raheem's move to Manchester City, he has received unwarranted criticism and vitriol from the UK media and fans like no other player.

Sterling targeted by certain outlets

Hours after scoring for City in their 3-0 win away to Crystal Palace in the FA Cup, The Daily Star ran with a story detailing how, despite costing over £44m, Raheem allegedly has a soft spot for Gregg's pasties.

The week prior to the FA Cup clash, The Daily Star ran another piece about Raheem. This time criticising Sterling for turning up to training in his Mercedes that was covered in dirt despite him drawing a huge wage from City.

This week Raheem responded to the trivial and nonsensical articles on his Instagram, in response to the 'dirty car' article he replied; "Around December/Janaury thought there was just no point in washing your car cause the next day it'll be muddy again, sorry my fault!!! make sure clean next time you guys around."

He responded to a further two articles that criticised him but later deleted the posts for unknown reasons, perhaps to avoid fuelling the papers that are seemingly infatuated with him. He has been criticised for using budget airline's and shops such as EasyJet and Poundland but weeks later then berated for having the gaul to spend his own money on expensive cars and houses.

Sterling has managed to ignore media criticism and impress

It's a battle Sterling can't seem to win, a player who has improved dramatically under Pep Guardiola and was told to stay away from social media and focus on his game.

Yet despite this, he's regularly a target for 'gutter journalism' that seeks to undermine him and tarnish his character in whatever manner they can, rarely commenting on how he has excelled under his new manager.

Thankfully these articles have appeared to have had little effect on Raheem as he continues to impress in Sky Blue, with performances this season that surely cement his place in the side for years to come.