Bernardo Silva: Pundit jokes Man City star has ‘a terrible habit’ and keeps ‘rubbing it into his rivals’
Alex McLeish was blown away by Bernardo Silva’s “tremendous” technical ability for Manchester City against Sporting CP on Tuesday night.
The former Scotland manager, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, insisted the 27-year-old is like “poetry in motion” when in posssession.
As quoted by Sky Sports (16 January) after the win over Sporting, Pep Guardiola branded Silva as the “perfect player” and “more than exceptional”.
Silva netted twice en route to a 5-0 win in Portugal.
McLeish admitted he has been dazzled by the midfielder’s quality.
McLeish told Football Insider’s Russell Edge: “Back in the day, one of the phrases going about when you saw a good player was: ‘He’s a proper player’.
“That doesn’t just mean that he’s a good centre-half or a good tackle. It meant he could manipulate the ball in a way others couldn’t.
“That’s what that guy can do. It’s poetry in motion when he’s running with the ball. His vision, he’s got a terrible habit of keeping the ball and never losing possession.
“These habits are absolutely tremendous for a player at the top level that he’s performing at. Wee Silva was rubbing it into his rivals.”
Silva has been a mainstay for Guardiola this season, with 33 appearances under his belt.
He has scored 10 goals across all competitions, with Tuesday’s strikes his first in the Champions League.
City return to Premier League action on Saturday with a home tie against a struggling Tottenham side.
Guardiola’s men currently sit nine points clear at the top of the table, although second-placed Liverpool have a game in hand.
In other news, pundit makes “frightening” Manchester City transfer claim after source’s Erling Haaland reveal.