Bernardo Silva of Manchester City celebrates after scoring a goal to make it 1-3 during the Premier League match between Everton and Manchester City at Goodison Park on February 17, 2021 in Liverpool, United Kingdom.
Pep Guardiola believes Bernardo Silva is back to his best after Manchester City continued their imperious winning run with victory at Everton on Wednesday night.
Silva set up one and scored another as Guardiola’s side pulled away in the second half, winning 3-1 for a 17th consecutive victory in all competitions and one that puts them 10 points clear at the top of the Premier League.
Silva was at the heart of so much that City did, with the 26-year-old looking fully back in the groove after a slow start to the season.
“What a player is all I can say,” Guardiola said. “Everything he does he does incredibly well. The year we won a second Premier League title in a row he was unstoppable and now he is back.
“He is a lovely person and as a manager you love to have players like Bernardo. His mum and dad must be so proud of the son they have.”
Though Richarlison cancelled out Phil Foden’s opener late in the first half, City’s class showed after the break as they took the game away from Everton.
Silva laid on the ball for Riyad Mahrez to bend in a fine second goal just after the hour before getting his own name on the scoresheet, killing off Everton with a 77th-minute strike.
1️⃣0️⃣ in a row! 🤩
— Manchester City (@ManCity) February 18, 2021
We looked back at last night's 3-1 win at Everton as well as another broken record in the latest edition of our official podcast! 🎧
🔷 #ManCity | https://t.co/PtoxQVfpeA
Mahrez’s shot was the best moment of the night, but the Algerian was quick to praise Silva for his own role.
“We have always had a good connection,” Mahrez said. “We don’t even need to speak to each other, we know where we are. We all know each other.
“We train so well we know the movement. When you keep winning and scoring goals the confidence grows.”
A key to City’s winning run has been the way players have kept stepping up to fill in voids when injuries have struck the likes of Kevin De Bruyne.
De Bruyne made his first appearance in almost a month at Goodison, coming on as a late substitute while Guardiola gave a positive update on Ilkay Gundogan, who missed the match at Goodison with a groin problem.
“He is much, much better,” Guardiola said. “It is not a big issue, but to avoid risk we have given him a few more days to recover. But for Arsenal (on Sunday) and Borussia Monchengladbach he should be ready.
“Of course Gundo is exceptional. We spoke about that. If you want to win titles and finals we need the whole squad.”
