Pep Guardiola believes Raheem Sterling forms part of the strongest attacking group he's coached at Manchester City.

Sterling scored in the 4-1 win over Southampton in the FA Cup quarter-finals on Sunday.

"I didn't have any doubt about him," Guardiola told reporters about selecting Sterling.

"But at the same time I have Jack [Grealish], Phil [Foden], Riyad [Mahrez] - you saw the minutes Riyad played that the impact on the team was massive, the quality for many things. But Raheem deserves the best. I've said many times what we have done this season could not be possible without Raheem.

"He's an important player but we have never had this amount of quality, the huge talent we have up front. Even Gabriel [Jesus] is a top player. Today he made a big assist and won the penalty. The impact is always in the box.

"But I have to make a selection and I'm glad he played really well, scored a goal and was so aggressive in the final third, always creating chances. That's why I'm really pleased for him and hope he continues to do this."