Silva shines as Man City push Bournemouth nearer to relegation
Pep Guardiola insisted there is absolutely no potential for persuading David silva to stay at Manchester City after the Spanish midfielder inspired a 2-1 win that pushed Bournemouth nearer to relegation on Wednesday.
Silva opened the scoring with a outstanding free-kick and setup Gabriel Jesus's solo effort at the Etihad Stadium to leave Bournemouth three points from safety despite David Brooks' late goal.
Silva will leave towards the end of the growing season and City boss Guardiola recently suggested the 34-year-old deserves a statue to recognise his remarkable a decade with City.
Asked if there is a way he can keep the playmaker, Guardiola said: "He has made a decision to leave, he has said many times. I think he wants to finish after 10 seasons here.
"He's experienced incredible top form since we returned from the lockdown.
"He played another exceptional game and scored again, 2 times in a row a fantastic goal.
"Hopefully he comes home for a farewell game that he more than deserves and he can discover a place for the last years of his career."
A ninth successive away defeat means Bournemouth get into their final matches against Southampton and Everton likely needing two wins to get a potential for extending their five-year stay in the top flight.
With West Ham and Watford -- the teams directly above Bournemouth -- meeting on Friday, the Cherries aren't down yet, nonetheless they are in severe danger of slipping in to the Championship.
"It isn't about performance at this stage of the growing season because we wish results but I cannot fault the lads," Bournemouth boss Eddie Howe said.
"We played at the proper times and mixed it up well. I'm just absolutely devastated to end up with nothing after putting so much in to the game."
City's mood is far more upbeat following the Court of Arbitration for Sport backed their appeal against UEFA's two-season Champions League ban on Monday.
Already assured of second place in the Premier League, City's priorities are Saturday's FA Cup semi-final against Arsenal and their Champions League last 16, second-leg clash with Real Madrid the following month.
Having lost the Premier League title to Liverpool, City seem to be determined to add more trophies to the League Cup they won earlier this season.
They have won their last three games, scoring 12 goals in the process.
Raheem Sterling and Kevin De Bruyne were on the bench as Guardiola made six changes, however the imperious Silva endured these were not missed.
Silva bagged an excellent free-kick against Newcastle in City's last home game and he took just six minutes to create another sumptuous set-piece at Bournemouth's expense.
Fouled by Jefferson Lerma, Silva dusted himself down, took aim from the right-hand side of the penalty area and curled his free-kick past Aaron Ramsdale's despairing dive in to the roof of the web.
- Fearing the worst -
After a bright start, City lost just a little rhythm and Bournemouth's Josh King was presented with room for a go that drifted wide.
City keeper Ederson was called on to make a superb save as he pushed Junior Stanislas's free-kick onto the post.
Ederson found the rescue again to deny Dan Gosling before Dominic Solanke's effort from the rebound was blocked by Otamendi.
Despite their wobble, City's capability to conjure a moment of magic remains unparallelled plus they doubled their lead through Jesus's sublime effort in the 39th minute.
This time around Silva was the provider with a deft pass to Jesus, who glided past a gaggle of Bournemouth defenders, nutmegged Jack Stacey and fired into the far corner.
Jesus's third goal in his last three games took him to 21 this year in every competitions, a well-timed spree with Sergio Aguero sidelined after knee surgery.
Bournemouth received hope by Brooks when the former City academy graduate tapped in from Callum Wilson's cross in the 88th minute, but it was too late to salvage a spot.
