Manchester City stars are not the only ones on vacation as kids flock to Etihad campus for autographs
Kevin De Bruyne, Ederson and Bernardo Silva stop to meet fans - as Pep Guardiola's men reel after losing huge games 3-0 to Liverpool and 3-2 against Man Utd
SOME might say it is Manchester City's defence that has been on holiday.
But, despite conceding six goals in defeats against fierce rivals Liverpool and Manchester United, City stars halted their cars to greet schoolkids who flocked outside training at the Etihad Campus today during the Easter half-term break.
Kevin De Bruyne, Ederson - who arrived in a £200,000 Ferrari 458 - and Bernardo Silva struggled to raise convincing smiles as they wound down their windows to sign autographs.
The were surely still reflecting on last Wednesday's 3-0 loss at Anfield in the Champions League quarter-final first leg and Saturday's 3-2 humbling at home to United.
That derby dismay will be harder to take for Etihad fans.
At 2-0 up after a dominant first half, City were swaggering to the victory they needed to clinch the title with five weeks to spare.
But Paul Pogba's double led a United comeback win that probably explained the muted mood of both fans and players today.
Playmaker De Bruyne, 26, who was surprisingly used only as a substitute against United, donned dark sunglasses and a grey sports-top as he stopped his blue Range Rover for young autograph-hunters.
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Keeper Ederson, 24 also wore a neutral-looking T-shirt as he met supporters - although his red Ferrari could hardly be called quiet.
And kids sprinted down the street outside the City HQ to catch up with the Mercedes of Portugal midfielder Silva, 23.
City must show that same energy themselves tomorrow if they hope to overturn Liverpool's huge advantage in the return leg.
And boss Pep Guardiola will certainly tell his team to focus on their own game - after two City men took swipes at the tactics of their fiercest rivals Liverpool and United.
Full-back Danilo, 26, said of United on CityTV: "They just used long balls, they scored three goals.
"We played the same way we done all the season.
"We kept the same level of performance, but it didn't work."
And fellow Brazilian Fernandinho delivered a similar verdict on Liverpool as he looked ahead to Tuesday night.
The 32-year-old said: "They are a team who like to play long balls, fighting for the ball.
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"They try to keep the players around the middle, but I think we're going to be ready for tomorrow's game.
"I hope we can solve all the problems we had, especially in the first half, in 10-15 minutes we conceded three goals.
"Then we can apply our type of game to win the game."
