David Silva

Manuel Pellegrini has revealed that midfielder David Silva has been going through a poor run of form largely because he has been playing through a pain barrier.

The former Valencia midfielder used to be one of the finest creator of chances for his team. Even though he has managed 10 assists and two goals in the league this season, it has been a campaign to forget for the 30-year-old. This has been down to a combination of frequent injuriesand being in and out of the team. The players recently returned to the starting line-up in the 4-0 win against Aston Villa.

Silva played a starring role by creating two goals and was named as the man of the match. Pellegrini says that he expects much better performances from the 30-year-old in coming weeks. So far, he has not been able to keep up with his high standards due to a niggling injury. Rather than rule himself out of contention for games, Silva has kept going even during considerable amount of pain. The troubles undergone by the 30-year-old is unlikely to pay any rewards as far as the domestic season is concerned. City are left fighting only in the Champions League, as they have been poor domestically.

“David is coming back from a long - I can’t say an injury because it is a pain in his ankle.He is trying to improve as much as he can, but he continues to play not 100 percent comfortably.He did well against Villa and I hope if he is 100 percent he will continue improving.He is still feeling the pain,” said Pellegrini. Similarly, City have not been able to get the best out of players like Yaya Touré and Sergio Aguero due to similar reasons. Touré is widely expected to leave the club in the summer.