Why Bernardo Silva looks set to ascend to world-class level in Kevin De Bruyne’s absence

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Bernardo Silva has won two consecutive league titles with two different clubs having two different levels of involvement.

For Monaco in 2016/17, he was instrumental, one of the principality’s key players as they romped to Ligue 1 in phenomenal style. His big-money move to Manchester City was well-earned, but then the Portuguese phenomenon became a bit-part player in Manchester as the Sky Blues powered their way to an incredible 100-point Premier League title win.

In many ways it was understandable, Monaco 2016/17 was Silva’s third season under coach Leonardo Jardim. He knew the country, the club, and most importantly the tactics. He was well-embedded.

Coming to Manchester he had to adapt to a new country (with cold weather!), a new club and culture and of course; Pep Guardiola’s tactics.

So he took his time doing so, playing 1520 minutes across 35 appearances (just 15 starts) in the league. Compare this to Monaco where he played 37 times (starting 33) for a whopping 2800 minutes and you can see why many feared for his future in Manchester.

But they needn’t have, because now Silva has adapted, he’s looking ready to take England by storm.

And Kevin De Bruyne’s injury has given him the perfect opportunity to do it.

Silva’s role for Monaco was clearly defined as a right-winger in a 4-2-2-2 formation. The Portuguese operated out of the half-space, often drifting infield to create as Djibril Sidibé streaked outside of him to provide width. And in his first season at the Etihad, he played in much the same way, right-winger in a 4-3-3 who often cut infield. Although under Guardiola his starting position was often much wider.

Still, his future always seemed to lie elsewhere, with right-wing just being the safest place to get him minutes. The addition of Riyad Mahrez in the summer – a left-footed right-winger whose pace and profile put him more in line with City’s other wide men Raheem Sterling and Leroy Sané – all-but confirmed Guardiola’s plans to move Silva from that right-wing berth.

And so it was made clear in the Community Shield as Silva lined up in central midfield next to Phil Foden.

This was to be the evolution, moving him into the middle as Pep had done with David Silva before him. One doesn’t tend to think of these slight mediapunta-types (the kind of no. 10 you’d see playing “wide” in a 4-2-3-1) as capable of playing central midfield, but remember that Pep Guardiola once turned a 5’9 defensive midfielder into a world-class centre-back, so normal rules don’t apply here.

In fact, playing central midfield is really Bernardo Silva’s ideal role in Guardiola’s system. He lacks the pace and stamina to play as a true winger, and his best work for Monaco was usually done from the half-space anyway, which is basically the zone he operates in as one of Guardiola’s so-called “free 8’s.”

Of course, originally it looked like he would have been the back-up and eventual heir for namesake David Silva, but De Bruyne’s injury has thrust him into a starting role. There’s simply no one better qualified to fill the shoes of the brilliant Belgian than the peerless Portuguese, both in the sense of the minimum requirements of the role, but also the nature of Bernardo Silva’s skill-set.

He’s unknowingly been preparing for this role his whole life.

From playing as a no. 10 with his country, to working as one of Jardim’s “wingers” – everything has been about Silva refining his technique and control of the ball in key central zones. Silva is able to pass the ball quickly, evading defenders and threading balls through narrow passing corridors. So now when he plays in the middle of Guardiola’s midfield he just ignites, his every instinct working harmoniously with what he has to do.

Moreover, thanks to his year of adaptation, he’s not intimidated by the Premier League’s physicality or aggression and knows how to navigate it. And given he has played as a winger in City’s system, he knows what Guardiola asks of his wide men and the positions they are likely to take up and the runs they will make, allowing him to play more instinctively when it comes to finding them.

Above all else, Bernardo Silva has proven by helping drive Monaco to a title win from such a key role that he has the mentality needed to be the protagonist and assume leadership of the midfield just like De Bruyne did. It’s why City haven’t really suffered the absence of their star man, and why, when he returns, they could pair him with Bernardo Silva and ascend to an even higher level of play.

Because at the rate he’s been improving, by the time De Bruyne returns, Bernardo Silva will be one of the best midfielders in the world.

The post Why Bernardo Silva looks set to ascend to world-class level in Kevin De Bruyne’s absence appeared first on Squawka News.



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