Bernardo Silva wants a refreshed Manchester City squad to put a smile back on the faces of fans in time for Christmas.
Silva came up with the most brutal putdown yet for the Blues on their dismal run of form when he described their level in the closing minutes of the Manchester derby as being the standard of Under-15s. The midfielder has battled gamely all season, starting nine of the last 11 games where it has all gone wrong for Pep Guardiola's side and taking up whichever position has been asked of him with so many players out injured.
However, the Portugal international has been unable to stop the alarming slide of the champions that shows no sign of ending any time soon. It has been a chastening time for a group of players that celebrated an historic fourth consecutive Premier League title just seven months ago, and Silva is especially keen to break out of their slump for the fans who have supported them through the poor form.
"We’re not used to losing so many games. We have set such high standards for the past eight or nine years and now we’re going through a difficult time," he told the Manchester Evening News.
"Everyone knows we have the quality to start picking up better results because that’s why we have won four Premier League titles in a row. We’re going to keep fighting and working hard.
"As a football club we have always been together and that doesn’t change if we’re making history by being the only club to win four Premier League titles in a row or when we’re going through a tough moment like we are now.
“We have our style of play, our principles and we have to stick with them and work harder than ever. We know we are missing players through injury, but we can’t use that as an excuse and we have to stay together as a group to adapt in this difficult period.
"We know we need to improve and take responsibility as a group of players to put the smiles back on the faces of our fans. Our fans have been unbelievable, home and away, and all we want to do is make them happy.”
Silva's comments after the derby were particularly hard-hitting from a player who never likes to take himself too seriously. The 30-year-old has accepted being the butt of jokes in the squad since he arrived from Monaco in 2017 and once kept his Christmas tree up for the whole year after his mum came to Manchester to put it up in the festive period.
City's players were given the time to embrace Christmas with two days off at the start of the week given they had already been knocked out of the Carabao Cup. Guardiola wanted his players to refresh their minds as he said 'everything is in our heads' ahead of their trip to Villa Park on Saturday.
As well as returning to training on Wednesday feeling more positive, the squad also took part in Christmas activities on Thursday to help spread some cheer in the community as part of the club's official campaign that has raised more than £175,000 already for City in the Community. '0161 Christmas Calling' has included a host of surprises from Erling Haaland visiting a local primary school and Oscar Bobb playing FIFA at Royal Manchester Childrens' Hospital to Brian Kidd entertaining guests at CITC's Senior Cityzens Christmas party.
Silva joined Ilkay Gundogan in attending a BTEC football tournament on the community pitch at the training ground, the pair working with 200 students and giving some coaching tips along the way. Having cherished time away from the slog of City matches this week, Silva is hoping that there will be more happy faces in the away end on Saturday.
“It’s rare we get a week with no midweek game! Pep has always been great at giving us days off and we all needed Monday and Tuesday to spend time with our families and loved ones," he said. "Having no midweek game allows for more preparation time for what will be a really tough match at Villa Park on Saturday.
“Spending time with your family and loved ones is so important to me. It can take you away from the demands and pressures of football which is welcome when we have a game every three days.”
“I love Christmas and this time of year. As I said, being with your family and loved ones is so special and Christmas is obviously the best time to do that.
"It’s also great to help other children and our fans in Manchester celebrate Christmas. City in the Community does an amazing job in making lives better for the local areas in Manchester and I know I speak on behalf of all of my teammates when I say we are proud to be involved and represent the club at these events.
"We know it can bring such an impact to lives across Manchester and that is amazing to see.”
Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk are set to lock horns again on December 21 with the Brit attempting to avenge his defeat by the Ukrainian in May. Victory for Fury could also set up a huge domestic showdown with bitter rival Anthony Joshua next year
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