Bernardo Silva opens up on tough Man City season - 'hasn’t been the same'

Manchester City are fifth in the Premier League, 20 points from leaders Liverpool after winning just 13 of their 26 games so far

Bernardo Silva has spoken honestly about Manchester City's tough season and how much it has affected him personally.

City started the Premier League campaign positively and were unbeaten for more than two months before that was brought to an abrupt end in October - ending in a number of painful defeats to the likes of Tottenham Hotspur, Sporting Lisbon and bitter rivals Manchester United. By Christmas it was clear that it was going to be difficult for City to retain the title after nine defeats in 13 games.

Their Champions League campaign was also a shambles: finishing outside of the qualifying places and allowing Real Madrid to come back to win 3-2 at the Etihad in the first leg play-off. Further damage was done in the second leg with Kylian Mbappe scoring a hat trick while Nico Gonzalez netted a consolation goal in stoppage time.

Now, in an interview with Portuguese channel DAZN, Silva has spoken at length about City's season. "It is, without a doubt, a difficult season, very frustrating, because the level we have accustomed our fans has been a very high level," he said. "A level at which in the last seven seasons we have won six Premier Leagues, we have always managed to reach very advanced stages of the Champions League and we have managed to fight for many League Cups and FA Cups. And this year the level hasn’t been the same, we haven’t been able to maintain that level.

"It was obvious that a season like this would have to come, sooner or later. What we have done, what this generation has done, is considered by many to be perhaps the most successful team in the history of English football. And so we mustn’t forget that, because no one has achieved the domestic quadruple that we achieved five or six years ago. No one has achieved the treble with the Premier League, the FA Cup and the UEFA Champions League. No one has achieved the four Premier League titles in a row that we achieved last year, and so obviously maintaining this level was always going to be difficult."

Silva has also admitted the tough period has had an effect on him mentally. "You asked me about the tactical or mental aspects. I think it has been a very difficult and mental battle, because winning, winning, winning, a team that is used to so much success and suddenly taking as many hits as we have this year, is not easy, on a personal level," he explained.

"This has never happened to me in my career and it has been tough, because I am not used to it, I do not accept it, and when week after week we lose important games, and in some of them even when we are playing well. It is not easy to accept and we are trying to turn the situation around.

"We are trying to find different solutions, and I am sure that this club, one way or another, will be very successful again in the future, but I hope that six bad months, because they have been six bad months and we have to accept that. But I hope that six bad months do not put everything into question, because that would be the beginning of the end."