City risk Bernardo ban after Newcastle victory amid Arsenal worry
Manchester City star Bernardo Silva avoided a red card against Newcastle but moved closer to the yellow card threshold in the Premier League
Bernardo Silva of Manchester City challenges Dan Burn of Newcastle United
Bernardo Silva was considered fortunate by some not to earn a ban for his performance against Newcastle. In particular, flying into a challenge with Dan Burn while already on a yellow was seen as a potential sending off offence and Eddie Howe was even asked about it in his press conference after the game..
Referee Thomas Bramall did not see it that way, to the relief no doubt of Pep Guardiola. Silva continues to be an integral player in the manager’s squad as one of the most experienced, both as a leader and an essential piece of a new system with two up front that has been working for the Blues in recent weeks.
However, while Silva escaped punishment on Saturday, the yellow card he picked up against Newcastle could end up being more costly than a red would have been. His booking against Newcastle was his third in the last three league games and his eighth of the season in the Premier League.
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That moves him worryingly close to the threshold for a ban; if he picks up two more yellow cards over the next five league games he will be given a two match ban. Unless the Crystal Palace game is rescheduled before any of them, Silva will have to avoid two bookings from games with Leeds, Forest, West Ham, Chelsea, and Arsenal.
The Arsenal game is obvious the biggest worry around a potential suspension. While City have the League Cup final and at least one more FA Cup game coming up, any suspension will only apply to Premier League games and so should Silva pick up a tenth booking in the league against West Ham or Chelsea he will, as it stands, be ruled out of the Arsenal game.
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Silva is the only player the Guardiola really has to worry about passing the threshold of yellow cards. Nico Gonzalez is next on six but has been out of the team recently, while Gianluigi Donnarumma has tempered his early frustration and only has five. Silva will have to follow suit and stay out of trouble if he wants to remain eligible to play in the potential title decider against Arsenal.
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