Revealed: Why Bernardo Silva is absent from Manchester City’s squad against Burnley

Bernardo Silva is absent from the Manchester City matchday squad to face Burnley in the FA Cup quarter-finals on Saturday.

City will be looking to reach the final four of this season’s edition of the FA Cup, booking a spot at Wembley Stadium, and continuing their pursuit on three fronts heading into the latter stages of the campaign.

Pep Guardiola’s side are in hot pursuit of Arsenal at the top of the Premier League table as they look to win the English top-flight for the third consecutive season, while a place in the Champions League quarter-finals was also secured in midweek.

A 7-0 win over RB Leipzig registered an 8-1 aggregate victory across two-legs in the last-16, with Erling Haaland’s five-goal haul and fine efforts from Ilkay Gundogan and Kevin De Bruyne securing a double-header in the last-eight against Bayern Munich next month.

Saturday evening brings Vincent Kompany’s runaway Championship leaders, Burnley to the Etihad Stadium, as the City legend looks to heighten his hugely impressive campaign with a trip to Wembley for the Clarets.

Pep Guardiola has selected a very strong line-up to start at the Etihad Stadium, with the likes of Rodri, Kevin De Bruyne, Phil Foden, and Erling Haaland all named in the starting XI, although one major omission was Bernardo Silva.

The Portugal international misses out on this contest through suspension after picking up a yellow card during the closing stages of the fifth round victory over Bristol City at Ashton Gate earlier this month.

Bernardo Silva will return to the Manchester City squad after the upcoming international break, as Pep Guardiola’s side return to Premier League action on April 1st with a home clash against rivals Liverpool.

Manchester City

Starting XI: Ortega; Walker, Dias, Laporte, Lewis; Rodri, De Bruyne, Foden; Mahrez, Haaland, Alvarez.

Substitutes: Ederson, Phillips, Stones, Ake, Gundogan, Grealish, Gomez, Akanji, Palmer.

Burnley

Starting XI: Peacock-Farrell, Roberts, Al-Dakhil, Beyer, Maatsen, Cullen, Gudmundsson, Tella, Zaroury, Vitinho, Foster.

Substitutes: Muric, Taylor, Cork, Barnes, Twine, Bastien, Obafemi, Dervisoglu, Benson