We want two Trebles in a row – Man City’s Silva

Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva says winning the Treble for a second consecutive year is an “inspiration and motivation”.

They face Real Madrid in the second leg of the Champions League quarter-final on Wednesday (20:00 BST) following a 3-3 draw at the Bernabeu last week.

“We want to create the legacy. We want two Trebles in a row,” said Silva.

“We want four Premier Leagues in a row. We want the Champions League twice in a row. If we win two Trebles in a row that would be legacy.

“[But] in one week we could be out of all the competitions. But we are fighting.”

City take on Chelsea on Saturday in the FA Cup semi-final and sit top of the Premier League after title rivals Liverpool and Arsenal both lost at the weekend.

While Pep Guardiola’s side are favourites to win all three competitions, they have not always been at their best this season and Silva said there has been a “hangover” from the last campaign.

“To have that hunger to again go is not easy. It’s a mix of having a lot of players injured, having new players and those that have left. New players have to adapt which is not easy,” he said.

“Our feeling inside is to fight as much as we could. We have to fight. We can fight for all three competitions.”

While his players are considering the prospect of a second Treble in a row – something no team has done before – City boss Guardiola says those things are “hypothetical dreams” for now.

“I am not going to say ‘don’t feel this’ to my players, but I have a different opinion. We are far away from those hypothetical dreams,” he said.

“When we are in the final of the FA Cup and two or three games in the Premier League and in the final of the Champions League I will start to think about that.”

After a breathless last-eight encounter in Madrid last week, Guardiola’s side will feel confident knowing they have beaten Real Madrid in their past three home games, including a 4-0 thrashing in last year’s semi-final.

Guardiola said City must have the “right energy” to prevent 14-time champions Real getting the better of them but that he does not fear Carlo Ancelotti’s side.

“If you think we have done it already it’s not good. We need that hunger to perform against teams,” the Spaniard said.

“I don’t fear Real Madrid. I respect them a lot. I have faced them many times. I’m not going to talk great things about them, and give you my opinion. And if I say I’m scared of them, it would be false.”

TEAM NEWS

City will be boosted by the return of defender Kyle Walker, who has been sidelined since sustaining a hamstring injury on England duty last month.

“He [Walker] has had one or two training sessions,” said Guardiola. “He feels good with his mood. I don’t know if [he will play] from the beginning, or from the bench, but he will be with us tomorrow.

“It is incredible good news for many reasons. He is our captain and in last year’s matches played against players like Vinicius, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe and he knows how to defend them like nobody else.”

Midfielder Kevin de Bruyne is also expected to return after pulling out of the starting 11 just before the first leg kicked off at the Bernabeu last week.

Nathan Ake did not travel to Madrid last week but was back in the squad for City’s 5-1 win over Luton Town on Saturday.

Real remain without Thibaut Courtois and David Alaba, who are recovering from anterior cruciate ligament injuries, while French midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni misses out having accumulated three yellow cards in Europe this season.