At a Glance:
Arsenal are on the brink of winning the Premier League title.
The Gunners just need to beat Burnley and Crystal Palace to be crowned champions.
Bernardo Silva has shared his honest thoughts on Arsenal and the title race.
Arsenal are on the brink of beating Manchester City to the Premier League title, and Bernardo Silva has subsequently revealed his honest thoughts on the intense battle that has ensued this season for this prestigious piece of silverware.
The Gunners are two wins away from their first top-flight title since 2004. Victories over Burnley and Crystal Palace will guarantee their status as English champions, and condemn City to two consecutive years without winning the league title for the first time since they didn’t win one between 2015 and 2017.
Paul Merson thinks the title will be decided on Tuesday night, when Pep Guardiola’s team visit Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium. If Arsenal beat Burnley, then anything other than a City victory will put an end to the race.
Bernardo Silva shares what he thinks of Arsenal and Premier League title race
Silva is set to leave City at the end of the season after nine years at the Manchester club. The Portuguese midfielder has won six league titles at the Etihad, as well as one Champions League title.
He’ll no doubt go down as a City legend, and while his spell in the north-west might end with a domestic cup double, it’s now unlikely to end with another Premier League title.
Silva clearly isn’t taking this slightly underwhelming end to an illustrious career in Manchester all that well. In an interview with The Athletic, the 31-year-old provided a dismissive verdict on Arsenal, before claiming that City would’ve won the league if they weren’t in a ‘transition season’.
Bernardo Silva on Arsenal:
“They’ve been growing and… well, it’s a team that has been together for, what, five years now, so it’s only natural that they would man up a little bit and start challenging for titles, so, yeah, let’s see what happens.
“No, I’m not in love [with…
— Transfer Sector (@TransferSector) May 15, 2026
“They’ve been growing and… well, it’s a team that has been together for, what, five years now, so it’s only natural that they would man up a little bit and start challenging for titles, so, yeah, let’s see what happens,” he said.
“No, I’m not in love [with Arsenal]. I do believe our main rivals were Liverpool by far. I also believe – and I know this is very subjective – that if we were not in a transitional season and if we didn’t make so many mistakes, we would have won this league.
“I don’t say we would have won easily, but we would have won this league. So it’s quite frustrating.”
Why Bernardo Silva’s comments will infuriate Arsenal fans
While most Arsenal fans have gone beyond the point of seeking validation from rival fans, players and pundits, Silva’s patronising comments will sting. The Portugal international essentially downplayed the Gunners’ imminent success by claiming that it was ‘natural’ (or inevitable) that they would be in this position because of how long Arteta’s group has been together.
He claimed that this current squad has been working in unison for five years, which isn’t really accurate. Five years ago, David Raya, Jurrien Timber, William Saliba, Declan Rice, Riccardo Calafiori, Piero Hincapie, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Martin Zubimendi, Mikel Merino, Eberechi Eze, Noni Madueke, Leandro Trossard, Kai Havertz, Gabriel Jesus, Viktor Gyokeres and Cristhian Mosquera had never played for Arsenal, and most weren’t even close to making their debuts.
The only players plying their trade in N5 five years ago who still do today were Bukayo Saka, Ben White, Gabriel Magalhaes, Martin Odegaard and Gabriel Martinelli.
Silva’s statement that City would’ve won the league if they weren’t in a ‘transition’ year is also nonsensical. In the last 18 months, the Citizens have splashed over £500 million on new players, more than any other Premier League club.
City spending from 2025–2026:
●January 2025:
Abdukodir Khusanov, Omar Marmoush, Nico González, Vitor Reis
●Summer 2025:
Gianluigi Donnarumma, Rayan Aït-Nouri, Tijjani Reijnders, Rayan Cherki, Marcus Bettinelli, James Trafford, Sverre Nypan
●January 2026:
Marc Guéhi,… pic.twitter.com/tpdIOkWR17
— Demore❤ (@ErlngRole) May 14, 2026
The idea that this level of investment should mean they’re in a transition period is absurd, while saying they would’ve won the league if they hadn’t made mistakes is a meaningless statement. The same could be said of any team that has ever narrowly missed out on the title.
If Arsenal hadn’t made some of the mistakes they’d made, they’d have run away with the title. In the same interview, Silva admitted that he’s a sore loser, which shows that he at least has some self-awareness.