Bernardo Silva has slammed the ‘disrespect’ shown towards Manchester City during their clash at Arsenal, branding it a grim day for the sport. The Portuguese midfielder has accused schedule planners of hindering his side’s ability to perform in north London.
The match ended in a dramatic draw after Gabriel Martinelli’s late equaliser cancelled out Erling Haaland’s opener, leaving City to rue the ‘unfair conditions’ under which they played. The scheduling of the Champions League fixtures is at the heart of Silva’s grievance, with City having faced Napoli on Thursday night, significantly later than Arsenal‘s Tuesday game in Bilbao.
Guardiola may have been reticent to comment post-match, but Silva was forthright following the 1-1 draw. “I am saying this because we didn’t lose. If we lost, I wouldn’t say this,” he declared. “But the reality is we cannot come to one of the most important games in the season with such a disadvantage, in terms of rest.”
He continued his criticism: “It is not fair to play one of these games like this. It is just not right.
“They had five days, and we had two and a half days. In one of the most important games, this cannot happen. I wasn’t feeling in a perfect condition to play like this, and people who have not played at the highest level don’t know how it feels to play a game like this.
“They don’t listen to us. It is what it is. We would like to change something. But it never changes. It does not really matter, but for the fans, for the respect of the clubs, and for the fairness of the competition, I don’t think what happened today was good.”
Silva’s concerns are expected to be ignored, as altering the schedule would necessitate unprecedented collaboration among football’s governing bodies, a scenario complicated by broadcasting commitments. The timing of City’s match against Arsenal, set by Premier League broadcasters before UEFA’s Champions League fixture announcements, is at the heart of the issue.
This isn’t the first time such a clash has occurred; Arsenal faced a similar situation last season. Europa League participants also regularly deal with Sunday matches following Thursday night games.
However, Silva’s grievance lies not with the quick turnaround itself but with the perceived advantage it gives one team in a major Premier League showdown.
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“The schedule is the schedule and I understand you have different competitions and UEFA, the Premier League, and the broadcasters want to make their money and I understand all those sorts of things,” Silva continued.
“We don’t mind playing every three or four days, and we don’t mind playing 60 games because we are used to that. But what we ask for is common sense because this is one of the biggest games of the season.
“And it is not because of us. I don’t think that they are trying to make us lose a game. It could happen to Arsenal or Liverpool in a few months.
“But when you are playing an Arsenal vs City or a City vs Liverpool or Liverpool vs Arsenal, you need to have a bit of common sense, and understanding of these situations and in such an important game, the players need to be in the same physical conditions – otherwise I don’t think it is fair. I know it might have happened to other teams in the past.
“We can lose any game in good conditions or bad conditions, but we need the respect and the common sense to be at the same level to compete.
“Today it did not feel like we were in the same physical condition as them.
“I felt the difference in the first half. If you play at the highest level you know that two days playing against one of the best teams in the league, away, with the travel, you need at least one more day to recover.
“It doesn’t matter if Arsenal had four, five or six days (to recover), just give us one more day, and that gives us three-and-a-half days, and then you make it an even game. Two-and-a-half-days is not enough to recover our bodies and to perform at the highest level. It is just not enough.”
Content Source: www.express.co.uk