Raheem Sterling's side are demanding talks with Chelsea over his future after the winger was left out of the 2-0 defeat to Manchester City.
The 29-year-old appeared to be prepared for a showdown with his former employers in Blues' Premier League opener at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
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Having taken an active part in pre-season training, Sterling was in contention for a place in the starting lineup under new coach Enzo Maresca.
But like teammates Conor Gallagher, Ben Chilwell, Trevoh Chalobah, Armando Broja and Romelu Lukaku, he was are overlooked Italian.
And with those five players now surplus to requirements for Chelsea, questions immediately arose about whether west London should sell the England international.
The forward's team insists they want to clarify the matter immediately.
A spokesman for Sterling said: “Raheem Sterling has signed a contract with Chelsea Football Club for the next three years.
“He returned to England two weeks early to undertake individual training and has had a positive pre-season under the guidance of his new manager, with whom he has developed a good working relationship.
“He is, as always, committed to providing the highest level of service to Chelsea Football Club and the fans, for whom he has the greatest respect.
“And given his inclusion in the club's official pre-match material this week, we expected Raheem to feature in some capacity in the match this weekend.”
“As a camp, we have always had positive dialogue with Chelsea Football Club and have received assurances from them regarding Raheem’s future at the club, so we look forward to receiving further clarification on the situation.
“Until then, we will continue to support Rahim's desire to start the new season positively.”
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Speaking after the defeat, Maresca did not elaborate on whether Sterling was in his plans but said his decision was purely tactical.
Asked by talkSPORT chief football correspondent Alex Crook whether Sterling has a future at Chelsea, Maresca replied: “He's a Chelsea player at the moment.”
“Like all the Chelsea players who are here now, they have a future.
“But it was just a technical solution, nothing more.”
Commenting on Sterling's team's statement demanding talks with Chelsea, Maresca said: “I haven't seen it.
“I was told when the game was over, but to be honest I didn’t see it, so I don’t know what the reason was.
“I was focused on the game, so I didn't notice.”
His comments come just a week after he described Sterling as an “important player” following the 1-1 draw with Inter Milan.
The former Leicester manager noted: “He is certainly one of our important players, along with the rest.”
“At this point, he sometimes plays from the very beginning, sometimes he withdraws into himself.
“The main thing is that we give him playing minutes, and he’s doing well.”
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Sterling has spent the past two years at Chelsea since joining from City in a £47.5m deal.
He has 19 goals and 12 assists in 81 matches across all competitions.
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