“From day one…” – Bernardo Silva’s emotional tribute to Manchester City fans as exit looms

“From day one…” – Bernardo Silva’s emotional tribute to Manchester City fans as exit looms Manchester City midfielder out of contract at the Etihad Stadium in June and expected to leave Portugal international thanks City fans for keeping faith in him during uncertainty over his future Silva takes great pride in fanbase approving of him as a player and sticking with him throughout Manchester City captain Bernardo Silva has paid a heartfelt tribute to the club’s fans and cited his bond with them as a key reason for him staying as long as he has. The Portuguese midfielder is set to leave the club when his contract expires in June, having enjoyed nearly nine illustrious, trophy-laden seasons at the Etihad Stadium. Since joining forces with Pep Guardiola from AS Monaco in 2017, the £43 million signing has led Manchester City to six Premier League titles, a maiden UEFA Champions League crown amongst a wide array of trophies.

However, the Benfica academy graduate has wanted to leave the club for over five years and is expected to part ways with City at the end of the current season. Bernardo Silva rejects immediate opportunity to join boyhood club after Manchester City exit I always felt a great connection with the fans, says Bernardo Silva is adored by Manchester City fans to a level of the same ilk as the likes of David Silva , Vincent Kompany , Sergio Aguero , Kevin De Bruyne and Fernandinho . The 31-year-old represents the best of Guardiola’s tenure in England and has formed the bedrock of nearly every City side that has broken records left, right and centre en route to etching its name in the history of English football under their Catalan manager.

“From day one, I always felt a great connection with them (the Manchester City fans),” Silva said in a recent appearance on the official Manchester City podcast . “We were talking about me eventually thinking about leaving – and there was a period – and there was those first games of the season where a lot of news was coming out, stories and stuff – and you go into that game with a feeling like, ‘Are they not happy with you? ’.

“And the reaction from the fans, it was always unbelievable in a surprising way! Even for me, because in other places, maybe I would’ve been booed or something. ” Bernardo: Man City fans a big reason why I’ve stayed so long Manchester City will honour Silva, a true great of the club, with a sizeable farewell if and when he leaves the club – whether that is this summer – or in the future, should director of football Hugo Viana and Guardiola convince the midfielder to put pen to paper and sign a new deal.