Manchester City captain Bernardo Silva has hit out at the fixture schedule, claiming they were placed at an unfair disadvantage in their 1-1 draw with Arsenal.
City travelled to the Emirates Stadium on Sunday, just three days after their Champions League clash with Napoli on Thursday night.
Arsenal played their European tie against Athletic Bilbao on Tuesday, giving them four days to prepare for the Premier League showdown.
Silva questions the fairness of the scheduling
Silva was frustrated by the lack of rest and admitted City could not reach their highest level in one of the season’s most important games.
“I am saying this because we didn’t lose – if we lost, I wouldn’t say this,” Silva said.
“The reality is, we cannot come to one of the most important games in the season with such a disadvantage in terms of rest.
“It is not fair to play one of these games like this. It is just not right. It cannot happen.”
The Portuguese midfielder admitted that he felt the effects on the pitch and suggested that other players also struggled with the physical demands.
“I wasn’t feeling in a perfect condition to play like this, and people who have not played at the highest level don’t know how it feels to play a game like this,” he added.
“You need to be in your best condition. We saw [Abdukodir] Khusanov getting injured because these games demand a lot.”
Silva argued that three days should be the minimum rest period between such high-level matches, adding that the decision to give City fewer recovery days was unfair.
City were minutes away from taking all three points before Gabriel Martinelli struck in stoppage time to rescue a draw for Arsenal.
Despite Silva’s frustration with the scheduling, the result leaves his side with plenty to fight for.
Man City will now turn their focus to their midweek League Cup fixture at Huddersfield Town.
