Bernardo Silva ‘incredibly stressed and had complete meltdown’ before Real Madrid penalty, says body language expert
BERNARDO SILVA had a “meltdown” as he was taking his penalty last night, a body language expert has claimed.
The Portuguese star played 120 minutes as Manchester City took on Real Madrid at the Etihad.
Following their 1-1 draw, the two sides went to penalties to decide the quarter-final tie.
When Silva stepped up it was 1-0 to City, with Julian Alvarez having scored and Luka Modric‘s effort having been saved by Ederson.
The attacking midfielder couldn’t extend his side’s advantage, however, instead tamely striking his effort down the middle.
With Andriy Lunin opting not to dive, he was presented with an easy save.
Silva had been made to wait to take his spot kick, after Modric had kicked the ball into the crowd following his miss.
He then appeared nervous as he stepped up, poking his tongue out.
Speaking to OLBG, body language expert Darren Stanton pointed to Silva’s nervous wait.
He said: “The crowd might have been giving Bernardo Silva time to compose himself by holding onto the ball, but it might have come across as a sign of disapproval from the fans.
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“This would have caused a more stressful wait for the player before taking his penalty.”
Stanton then gave his verdict on Silva sticking his tongue out, continuing: “It reminds me of someone having a kickabout in a park, it lacked any focus, or passion, get up and go.
“The tongue is the most significant gesture, it’s got several connotations depending on the context. Kids will do it for fun, sticking their tongues out.
“But one of the main reasons people do it is when people try to concentrate and focus. He was sticking his tongue out in a pacifying gesture.
“He was incredibly stressed under incredible pressure. But in slow motion, everything was wrong about the whole thing.”
Stanton concluded by claiming that Silva looked to be in “meltdown”.
He added: “The goalkeeper didn’t even have to move, it’s like kids in the park playing a normal game, using jumpers as goalposts. You can’t believe it was a professional footballer who took that shot.
“We don’t know what he was thinking, but from a body language point of view, he’s having a bit of a meltdown. It’s a crisis of confidence.
“The facial expression with his eyes just seemed to go into space, and the tongue is the main thing.
For some reason, in that moment, he’s had a complete meltdown
Body Language Expert
“He was trying to concentrate but at the same time, the way his tongue stuck out, he was trying to reassure himself. That’s what children do.
“For some reason, in that moment, he’s had a complete meltdown regarding his confidence in his abilities and craft.”
City went on to lose the shoot-out 4-3, with Lunin also denying Mateo Kovacic – after the Croatian’s former Chelsea team-mate Antonio Rudiger told him which way to dive.
Following his heroics, the Real Madrid goalkeeper, standing in for Thibaut Courtois, said: “I needed to take a risk with one of the kicks, we picked one (to stay in the middle) and thank goodness it worked out in our favour.
“It’s an away Champions League game and we went through a lot of suffering… but I’m very grateful to the team for everything they’ve fought for.
“I can’t imagine myself running like my team-mates did today.”
He also told Marca: “We prepared it with the goalkeeping coach and there were three players with whom we had doubts about whether to stay in the middle or not.”
Real Madrid will now face Bayern Munich in the semi-finals, after the German side defeated Arsenal 3-2 on aggregate.
City, meanwhile, will turn their attention back towards domestic action – with an FA Cup semi-final against Brighton to come on Saturday.
