BERNING BRIGHT
Silva returning to top form has City moving through the gears .. and close to their very best
IT could be coincidence Bernardo Silva’s dip in form last season mirrored Manchester City’s drop from their highest standards.
After all, there were other factors at play, including a near flawless Liverpool campaign which everybody found difficult to match.
But for Pep Guardiola the sight of the Portugal international returning to somewhere near his best in the first part of this season has been one of the most pleasing aspects to date.
And the addition of his first goals since last July here, as City eased past Birmingham in the FA Cup third round, put a big smile on his manager’s face.
Two strikes from the Portugal international inside 15 minutes – his first for 22 games – and a third from Phil Foden saw City dispatch the outof-form Championship side easily.
The second half saw Birmingham achieve some degree of respectability from a tie which they never really competed in as City rang changes.
But in truth, Guardiola’s men, first team or reserve, were never out of second gear as they booked their place in the fourth round.
And in Bernardo they had the stand-out player.
Birmingham hearts will have sunk when City were drawn out of the hat for the third round given they lost their last 12 trips here in all competitions
And if spirits lifted briefly with the news Sergio Aguero, who had been expected to start, was self-isolating after a friend contracted Covid, it will have plummeted when a strong team sheet landed.
This was as strong a side as Guardiola could field and they were on it from the first whistle, pinning back their visitors.
City’s front six, or seven if you included Joao Cancelo in his right back- right forward role, were relentless in their pressing, working tirelessly to retrieve the ball or pressure Birmingham’s possession on the occasions they lost it.
It all proved too much for the Championship side who were shellshocked by early strikes and never regained their composure.
Bernardo’s opener after eight minutes had taken what little wind the visitors had brought in their sails.
And given Aitor Karanka’s men were without a win since December 9 it was not much to begin with.
The technique of his left- foot volley was perfect, leaning to his right to get on top of a bouncing ball after George Friend’s header, his leftfoot volley arrowing perfectly inside Andres Prieto’s right-hand post.
Prieto was beaten again by the Portuguese seven minutes later after Bernardo finished off a marvellous team move involving Foden, Riyad Mahrez and Kevin De Bruyne, who cut the ball back for Bernardo (top left, the pair celebrating).
If the finish was a tap-in, it was a classic result of City’s telepathic understandi n g , Bernardo’s movement to get on the end of De Bruyne’s assist, starting as Mahrez fed the ball to the Belgian on the right byline.
Foden as good as wrapped up proceedings just after the hal fhour, cracking in a low left-foot shot from around 25 yards out after a surging run from Mahrez.
The second half always seemed a question of damage limitation for Birmingham who lacked ambition.
It was not until late substitute Jeremie Bela hit the post and bar that they threatened.
And that was too little, far too late against far too good a side.
MAN CITY: Steffen 6, Cancelo 7 (Harwood-Bellis 46, 7), Walker 6, Dias 7 (Stones 46, 6), Mendy 6, De Bruyne 7 (Nmecha 46, 6), Rodrigo 7 (Fernandinho 67 ,7), Bernardo 9, Mahrez 7, Foden 8, Jesus 7 (Delap 75)
BIRMINGHAM: Prieto 5, Colin 5, San Jose 5, Clarke-Salter 6, Friend 5, Kieftenbeld 6, Sunjic 5 (Bela 67, 7), Sanchez 5, Toral 4 (Clayton 46, 6), Leko 5 (Jutkiewicz 68, 6), Hogan 4 (Roberts 46, 5)