JACK GAUGHAN: Bernardo Silva earned the SALUTE days after his Champions League penalty… When the Man City star eventually leaves, his farewell will be sincere and he will leave a cult hero

There have been more iconic moments during Bernardo Silva’s time at Manchester City. Topping the lot is the speechless euphoria of scoring twice against Real Madrid last year. For City fans, the way he clung to a Styrofoam coffee cup during a guard of honor for Liverpool in an act of disrespect comes close.

More iconic but no more redemptive than Wembley. When he finally leaves, those standing behind that goal will remember their beating hearts beating the badge for pushing City to another FA Cup final. Silva is one of those rarities: both sensational footballer and cult hero.

He barely slept a wink Wednesday night, Silva. And not just because of baby Carlota.

Visions of Andriy Lunin gratefully grabbing his penalty, over and over again, the defining image of City’s shootout defeat to Real, almost a year after Silva’s coronation night in blue.

“Thursday night I slept a little better,” he said. The pain doesn’t subside that quickly, although Saturday definitely helped.

Silva erased the heartbreak of his missed penalty against Real Madrid this week with a late goal.

It was a moment of redemption for the midfielder, who ran to celebrate with the club’s supporters.

While Silva might have needed to score the winner for himself, he certainly didn’t need it for his teammates or his manager.

Everyone at City knows how much the Portuguese sacrificed for a club to enjoy him for seven seasons – far longer than expected or even desired.

The problem for Silva over the years, when he asked to leave, was that he made himself too valuable. Far too precious.

The utility work was done far too well. The club that claims any player is allowed to seek pastures new at the right price has bent its own rules for him. Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona have never threatened to make an offer anywhere near City’s high asking price.

A release clause in his latest contract changes the landscape ahead of the summer and it remains to be seen whether these figures are achievable for interested parties – most likely former club Benfica, where Silva hopes to finish his career.

Either way, City’s farewell to Silva will be as heartfelt as those of all those who came before him and what cannot be denied is everything Silva gave to Guardiola, who was always extremely grateful.

When Silva leaves Man City, he will be remembered as an exceptional player and a cult hero.

Silva was upset after failing to convert a penalty in their midweek European quarter-final

He revealed why he chose to kick the ball into the middle of the goal, only for Andriy Lunin to gratefully collect his penalty.

It happened again this weekend. Silva felt his hamstring and right calf in the first quarter of the semi-final and, truth be told, was considerably below his best of the day. He kept moving, kept running.

“I wasn’t doing well at all,” he said, echoing Guardiola’s complaints about the schedule.

‘It’s too much. Saturday was too much. It wasn’t fair because the FA didn’t give us a chance to recover. It seems like they don’t care because we’ve said it repeatedly.

“This team is like family, like brothers in the way we support each other when someone is missing. The guys have been amazing to me this week. And yes, we stick together and we go there. Now we have the FA Cup and the Premier League, we will do our best to win these titles.

Silva relived the penalty and suggested he didn’t make his decision until he saw Julian Alvarez’s first kick. “Basically I had two options, I had in mind one of the sides or the middle, I was waiting,” he added.

What cannot be denied is how much Silva has given to Pep Guardiola, who has always been extremely grateful.

Silva said his teammates were extremely supportive this week after the penalty.

“I wanted to be on the second or third penalty to see the goalkeeper’s reaction during the first penalties.

“And he moved early, that’s why I thought the middle was good because in pressure moments, goalies move 99% of the time, but he chose not to.”

Luckily for him, Djordje Petrovic also remained grounded and Silva earned the nod.