Bernardo Silva irritated by Man City players not getting due credit
Bernardo Silva is frustrated about Manchester City players apparently not getting as much credit as they deserve.
City have won four of the past five Premier League titles, a feat only previously managed by Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United.
Pep Guardiola’s arrival in 2016 has undoubtedly had an impact on their domination, with the Catalan coach quickly establishing a team identity that has made them one of the most entertaining and ruthless sides in Europe.
But Bernardo, who joined a year after Guardiola, thinks City are not as appreciated as they should be, with the Portugal international suggesting the end-of-season awards are evidence of this.
Last season, the Professional Footballers’ Association’s (PFA) Team of the Year contained only three City players – including Bernardo – to Liverpool’s six and Jurgen Klopp took the managers’ award, despite City winning the title.
While that does appear to be an anomaly, with City boasting the most Team of the Year representatives and Guardiola claiming the managers’ prize in each of their previous three title-winning campaigns before last season, Bernardo still feels the champions are judged differently to the rest.
Asked specifically if he gets the praise he deserves, Bernardo – who took the opportunity to go off on a bit of a tangent – told ESPN: “From Man City fans, definitely. I feel a lot of support, and they show a lot of appreciation for what I do.
“From outside, it’s difficult. I’m not complaining here, but I feel like other clubs get a lot more credit than Man City for doing less.
“For example, when I was at Benfica – a huge club in Portugal with more fans, more everything – you do something nice and they make it look like it’s great. Here at Man City, you do something great and they make it look like it’s just good.
“Again, I’m not complaining, but playing in the Premier League and winning four titles in five years and checking the Premier League Team of the Year every year and knowing that we’re never the team that has the most players.
“We don’t have the best manager, we don’t have the best players, but we still win four Premier Leagues in five years? It just doesn’t make sense. It probably shows that Man City players don’t get as much credit as they should.
“For me, it doesn’t matter honestly. I’m happy with the titles that we have and with the memories that in the last five years, we won four times. Of course, we don’t get the credit that we deserve.”