Bernardo Silva expects Manchester City to make significant changes this summer to revive the club’s high standards | OneFootball

Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva has admitted that he expects the club to make a number of high-profile changes in the closed-season.

The highly-experienced midfielder was part of Pep Guardiola’s starting line-up that slumped to a staggeringly poor showing at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday night, in the latest of a string of underwhelming results across the ongoing campaign.

City had lost the first-leg of a last-16 play-off tie against Carlo Ancelotti’s side 2-3 last week courtesy of late goals from Brahim Diaz and Jude Bellingham to overturn a lead that had been earned by an Erling Haaland brace.

The tie in the Spanish capital then saw Kylian Mbappe add to his first-leg equaliser with a hat-trick, in a damning reflection on the ageing legs and inability to compete within Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City ranks.

And as Etihad Stadium bosses took their first steps towards a major squad overhaul during the most-recent January transfer window, Bernardo Silva believes that yet more alterations could take place in the summer months in an attempt restore City’s high standards.

Speaking to ESPN in the aftermath of Manchester City’s defeat to Real Madrid on Wednesday night, Bernardo Silva admitted the strong feeling of sadness within the Etihad Stadium dressing room following their ongoing and increasing struggles across competitions.

“Of course, this season so far has been very frustrating. There are things that we can no longer recover: the Champions League, winning the Premier League. We’re out of the two most important competitions so we’re very, very sad,” the Portugal international admitted.

“I’m sure that with some changes that the club will probably make at the end of the season because that’s how it is when you don’t win in football, we will try to bring this club back to the level it should be at.”

The 30-year-old was quizzed on whether this has been the worst season he has experienced since arriving at the club in the summer of 2017, to which he failed to hesitate, “No doubt. A very difficult season.

“The whole season, there have been many matches where we were nowhere near our best. Against Madrid, we played against a very strong team, very, very experienced and very successful in this competition.

“But we didn’t do nearly enough to try and win the game. Madrid were much better and well, we have to accept it and try to improve every day for next season.”

The experienced midfielder went on to explain on the team’s slump in performance levels and overall form and results, “It seems incomprehensible to me too. I don’t have the right answer. There is a mixture of many things that have happened in the club too.

“Of course, not just the injuries, that’s no excuse. The levels of calm and confidence are not the same this season. The way the team plays is not the same and we have to get it back as quickly as possible.”

Manchester City will return to action as soon as Sunday afternoon when Arne Slot’s high-flying Liverpool visit the Etihad Stadium as they continue their pursuit of a first Premier League title for the club since the 2019/20 campaign.