Gary Neville has claimed that one player “epitomises Manchester City.”
The archetypal Manchester City player under Pep Guardiola is defined by a few standout attributes — technique, intelligence and hard work.
Guardiola has always had players who fit such a description at City.
Gary Neville names the player who “epitomises Manchester City”
In the Overlap newsletter, Gary Neville felt that was Bernardo Silva more than any other player at Manchester City.
“There have been many outstanding performers with Phil Foden to the fore, player of the year. But Bernardo Silva epitomises Manchester City. He’s 5’ 7” but like a wasp, never leaving you alone.”
Neville added: “His technique is outstanding, his positional sense among the best, but what makes him so great is marrying the workload to those qualities. His defensive duties are as good as his attacking creativity. City are an an elite team with a League Two work ethic, no one too talented to track back.”
Recently, Gary Neville claimed that Bernardo Silva could be Pep Guardiola’s favourite player at Manchester City due to how much he plays.
The £43 million player was City’s fifth-most played outfield player in the Premier League (2,578 minutes) during the 2023/2024 season, as per FbRef.
Especially in important games, the Portuguese international seems guaranteed to start, regardless of his form going into the contest.
Gary Neville raises a valid point about Bernardo Silva
In our view, Gary Neville makes a valid point about Bernardo Silva as he does sum up Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City side in a sense.
Long after Guardiola departs City, fans who did not have the pleasure of watching this side will wonder how they played.
A description of Bernardo Silva’s technical brilliance, unique intelligence, one-of-a-kind versatility and tireless work rate will perhaps sum up what made this team special.
A case can be made that no team in the Premier League has had a player like Bernardo at their disposal during his time in England.
The former AS Monaco’s wondrous talent coupled with Guardiola’s footballing education has turned him into a unique player.
Bernardo Silva is blessed with a level of completeness in every sense of the game that Manchester City do as well — making them impossible to contend with for other Premier League teams.
With that in mind, it is hard to disagree with Neville, even if other City players spring to mind.