The Man City midfield has been a key talking point this season and critics have suggested the ageing profile of the squad has been a big part of their problem.
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Bernardo Silva
Bernardo Silva has hit back at the critics calling City's team too old
Bernardo Silva has told Manchester City critics who have labelled the squad as too old this season that they "don't understand a thing about football" and vowed to make them eat their words.
The 30-year-old said he and his teammates would make their point on the pitch by taking City back to the top of the game after a disappointing season, but his combative response to questions about the age profile of the team showed the depth of feeling inside the dressing room.
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City's band of 30-somethings have often been cited as a problem this season, with a lack of physicality and energy used as a stick to beat them with, especially during a nightmare run of one win in 13 games at the end of 2024. But they showed they still have what it takes to compete by matching Bournemouth for intensity at the Vitality Stadium on Sunday, before Bernardo then made his point off the pitch as well as on it.
Even before Sunday's FA Cup quarter-final win there were eyebrows raised amongst some City supporters at a midfield of Ilkay Gundogan (34), Kevin De Bruyne (33) and 30-year-olds Bernardo and Mateo Kovacic, but they proved they still have what it takes to go up against one of the Premier League's most energetic sides.
Bernardo was in no mood to entertain the idea that this team is past its sell-by date post-match. Asked if that issue had been overplayed this season, he shot back, "That's people who don't understand the game."
The Portugal international wanted to know which players were being written off, telling reporters, "Tell me, which player? Give me names," before launching a defence of a group that has won everything there is to win at the Etihad.
"I'm 30 years old, Kovacic is 30 years old. You're not talking about guys that are 36," he said. "So we have six bad months or four bad months and out of nowhere we're old, we're not good enough?
"In the last eight seasons, we've won six Premier Leagues and for four bad months, we're old? That’s people that don't understand the game, never played the game and probably don't understand a thing about football."
This summer is likely to be one of overhaul in the City squad and some of those 30-somethings could depart the Etihad, but Bernardo insisted that being written had instilled a desire in the dressing room to show there is plenty of mileage left in the tank.
"We're going to prove them wrong. We have time for that," he said. "We're a bit late for this season, just maybe in a few competitions, but we'll be back, don't worry."
City have had an injection of youth and new faces this season and they helped turn Sunday's tie around. Twenty-year-old Nico OReilly came off the bench to set up both goals, with Erling Haaland getting the first and January arrival Omar Marmoush the winner.
Bernardo praised the impact O'Reilly has made on the squad this season and hailed his ability to step in and perform.
"It's difficult for a 20-year-old to settle into a team like Man City, to be patient enough because he has great players in his position and to keep going, to work hard and he's a good example," he said.
"The small amount of opportunities that he has, he's been taking them and that's a great example for the rest of the young guys. Today again, a great performance, two assists last game, last FA Cup game, two goals. So yeah, it's showing that he deserves a place in this team and that he can have more opportunities.
"We need fresh blood sometimes and we need the legs, we need the hunger from these kids and Nico, not just Nico, but the new guys that arrived also and some of the young guys. We need that and they've been helping a lot lately."
City's win at Bournemouth secured them a record-breaking seventh successive FA Cup semi-final and a showdown with Nottingham Forest in April and despite the regularity of Wembley trips, Bernardo still cherishes the occasion.
"Wembley is a very special venue, it's always nice to be there. We were in two finals the last two years against Man United, one we managed to win, last season we lost," he said.
"We want to be there again, fighting for the title, knowing it's not easy, because we played Forest in the semi-final and they're having a great season, but we have to put our energy into that."