“This player will be missed” – Hugo Viana receives desperate contract plea from Pep Guardiola | OneFootball

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola plied on the praise for club captain Bernardo Silva after his side’s 2-0 win over Newcastle in the opening leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final tie.

Silva was everywhere for the visitors and against a formidable midfield roster comprising Joelinton and Bruno Guimarães, the 31-year-old stood out by dictating play and breaking the lines as City left St. James’ Park with a healthy two goal lead ahead of the return leg at home.

There remains great uncertainty over Silva’s future at the Etihad Stadium, with the Portugal international out of contract in June and no indications at present over renewal talks with the Manchester City hierarchy and director of football Hugo Viana.

Viana revamped the Manchester City first-team squad upon his appointment last summer, signing off on the exits of a series of senior stars beyond their prime and recruiting seven new players to arm Guardiola with fresh ammunition to challenge for major trophies in the seasons to come.

Kyle Walker was shown the door upon his return from a brief loan stint at AC Milan last summer, with Guardiola taking captaincy matters into his own hands for the first time over the course of his managerial career by giving the armband to Silva, a trusted confidante.

Silva is one of Guardiola’s longest-serving players at City, having played an indispensable role in the success the Blues have enjoyed since his arrival from AS Monaco for £43 million in the summer of 2017 – in the backdrop of a breakthrough Ligue 1 winning campaign.

In the last 12 months, City have bid farewell to many notable figures who have been pivotal to Guardiola’s success at the club and Silva could well be following suit as he approaches the final months of his current deal at the Etihad Stadium.

The playmaker has gone on record to admit that he has made his mind up over his club future, although a public announcement of his plans beyond this season is not expected anytime soon as Manchester City remain in the running for silverware on four fronts.

Guardiola will be hoping that he can convince Silva to put pen to paper and commit his future to the Blues, who also tied down their manager to fresh terms in the fall of 2024 amid uncertainty over the Catalan’s own Manchester City future.

“You cannot imagine how much of a player Bernardo (Silva) is. This player will be missed,” Guardiola said after Silva’s five-star performance in the Carabao Cup semi-final opening leg win over Newcastle on Tuesday night.

“Hopefully he can extend (his Manchester City contract) for I don’t know how many centuries. That guy is a competitor, he knows all the rules, everything.”

Silva is not short of options as he mulls over the next chapter of his career, though Viana and co will be working overtime to tempt the midfielder to prolong his stay at the Etihad Stadium and choose to spearhead this new-look Manchester City side to even greater lengths in the seasons to come.