Bernardo Silva was depressed after Manchester City's latest defeat (Image: Getty)
Bernardo Silva has expressed concern that Manchester City have fallen into a “dark place” following their shocking 4-1 defeat to Sporting.
The Premier League champions were left reeling as Ruben Amorim's side, whose manager is set to take over at Manchester United, delivered a stunning performance at the Jose Alvalade Stadium on Tuesday, handing City their third consecutive defeat.
The Portuguese side were led by an impressive hat-trick from former Coventry striker Viktor Gyokeres.
It was City's first Champions League defeat without a shootout since 2022 and followed recent setbacks against Tottenham and Bournemouth.
Reflecting on the troubling streak, Silva, speaking to TNT Sports, admitted: “It's disappointing because we're in a bit of a dark place right now. Everything seems to be going the wrong way.
“Even when we play well, we don't mark our chances and we concede too easily. We definitely need to look inside and check what we are not doing well, and we need to improve very quickly, otherwise it will be very difficult .return from these losses.
Bernardo Silva, center left, and teammates react to Sporting Lisbon's second goal (Zed Jameson/PA) (Image: PA Wire/PA Images)
In contrast, City manager Pep Guardiola maintained a more positive stance, disagreeing with Silva's gloomy assessment. Guardiola, preparing for the upcoming match against Brighton, replied: “I don't agree with him. We are not on the dark side.”
Although he acknowledged the poor performance against Bournemouth, Guardiola praised his team's efforts in Lisbon but regretted the late penalties conceded, saying: “We played really badly against Bournemouth but really well here. The only regret is Having conceded the third and fourth, penalties were not necessary.
“We knew it would be a difficult season at the beginning and that's how it is. I like it, I love it, I want to face it and raise my players. Life is like that. We keep going.”
“What should we do? We go back to Manchester and prepare for the game at Brighton. I won't give up, that's for sure.”
The match initially appeared to swing in City's favor when Phil Foden capitalized on an error to give them an early lead. However, things changed dramatically when Gyokeres equalized before claiming a double from the penalty spot following Maximiliano Araujo's goal which propelled Sporting in front.
Pep Guardiola felt Man City's performance improved despite scoreline (Image: PA Wire/PA Images)
Erling Haaland's failed attempt to convert a penalty added to City's woes.
As it was Amorim's final home game before embarking on his new journey with United, he savored the moment, saying after the match: “Those who were here and saw Sporting over the last four years deserved an evening like this. It was very special.
“But we must not stop there, it must not be one-off. It was special in the circumstances but we must think about the next match against Braga.
“Maybe it was written in the stars that we should end up like this. I will keep these memories forever but I can't fully enjoy them yet.”
Ruben Amorim and Sporting Lisbon celebrate victory against Manchester City (Image: PA Wire/PA Images)
Source: https://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/1972248/Man-City-Bernardo-Silva-Premier-League