Pep Guardiola gave his thoughts on a key figure for Manchester City during the run-in.
The Citizens seem to be hitting their stride, having beaten Arsenal in the Carabao Cup final in March before beating Liverpool 4-0 in the FA Cup quarter-final last weekend. They will need to aspire to perfection to overturn a nine-point gap behind the league leading Gunners, and Bernardo Silva shall be a big part of the puzzle in whatever success can come their way by the end of May.
‘I would love if he could stay’
Bernardo banked a contract extension with the club in 2023 that lasted until the end of this season. He does not seem set to renew terms with the team, and if these are his final days in a City shirt, he will be a player that Guardiola gives up begrudgingly, having fought off interest to keep him in the camp.
“We need to [win] all of them otherwise it will not give us a chance to do it until the end. We were not consistent enough during the season, we dropped points that we should have taken and that’s why we are in the position now where we cannot do it differently.”
“I do not know, I am so grumpy with Bernardo because a month ago I said I had to be the first, to tell me and he didn’t say anything to me yet. I do not know if he has already decided because I said jokingly, ‘tell me, I deserve it’, but he didn’t tell me, so I do not know what is going on.”
“He has been an incredible signing for us. I love this club amazingly and I would love if he could stay and finish his career here, but I do not know.
“He will decide what he will decide. It is his decision, but he has been an incredible signing – the numbers, minutes, and titles. Especially in bad moments, I define the players in the bad moments when everything is difficult, how they make the step up and say ‘I’m here’ to help.”