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Man City look for Bernardo to hit the heights
MANCHESTER, United Kingdom, Nov 1, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Manchester City host
struggling Southampton in the Premier League on Saturday with Pep Guardiola
hoping that Bernardo Silva maintains his recent return to something
approaching the peak of his powers.
Portuguese playmaker Silva was among the most feared players in the
Premier League last season as City won all three domestic trophies.
The 25-year-old helped City supporters forget a long-term injury to Kevin
De Bruyne, scoring 13 goals and adding 14 assists as his side re-wrote the
English football record books.
The opening months of the new season have painted a very different picture
for Silva and City, however, not least after he found himself embroiled in a
racism controversy.
Silva has been charged with misconduct by the FA after posting a picture
of team mate Benjamin Mendy next to a mascot for a Spanish snack brand which
invited accusations that he was guilty of racial stereotyping.
The issue became even more complex when Guardiola and City star Raheem
Sterling made impassioned verbal defences of the player, who could face a
suspension when his case is heard by an independent regulatory commission.
And reports, citing sources close to Silva, have claimed that the
articulate Portuguese, who is fluent in English, has been adversely affected
by the controversy and accusations.
That has certainly appeared to be the case when comparing his form with
that of last season, although the return of De Bruyne, and some influential
cameos from a rejuvenated David Silva, have reduced the pressure on Bernardo
to be quite so dominant.
– Unequivocal defence –
Indeed, Bernardo has only started six of City’s 10 league games to date,
with De Bruyne and Silva both making two more starts than their team-mate.
That has been due, in part, to Guardiola opting to reduce his early-season
workload after Bernardo starred for Portugal in the Nations League this
summer.
Twelve months earlier, the City manager requested Bernardo cut short his
break after the World Cup in Russia to return to Manchester in readiness for
the start of a campaign in which his form never dipped.
But, after 12 months of non-stop football, it appeared that Guardiola
decided to use his asset more sparingly at the start of this season, with the
Portuguese star’s form dropping off accordingly.
The one glaring exception to that was the recent 8-0 win over Watford, in
which Bernardo scored a hat-trick, and, given the fact that Southampton
followed last week’s 9-0 home defeat by Leicester with a 3-1 League Cup
reverse at City on Tuesday, he will relish the chance to face such out-of-
form opposition once more.
Guardiola, whose side are six points behind leaders Liverpool, was
criticised for his unequivocal defence of Bernardo in the wake of the racism
controversy and will hope his support is rewarded in the long-term.
Meanwhile, Saints boss Ralph Hasenhuttl is well aware of the threat posed
by City, but he believes the humiliation against Leicester has refocused his
players’ minds.
“After 9-0 there is no more discussion necessary. Everybody knows that in
that way it cannot continue. And you could see that on Tuesday, it was a much
better performance,” he said.
“I think it was the longest distance we covered this season, so this was
exactly the reaction I wanted to see from my team. “This was absolutely
positive. They really invest a lot and to defend against such a team you need
to invest to cover a lot of distance.”
Guardiola will check on the fitness of back-up left-back Angelino, who
limped out of the cup tie with what looked like an ankle problem.
With Oleksandr Zinchenko a long-term injury absentee, French international
Benjamin Mendy is City’s only specialist left-back as Guardiola contends with
a long injury list in his defensive positions.
BSS/AFP/FI/ 0828 hrs