Bernardo Silva has written a confidential letter to the Football Association (FA) expressing his regret if any unintentional offence was caused by a tweet he posted on Sunday.
The Manchester City midfielder sent a tweet to team-mate Benjamin Mendy, comparing him to a character depicted on the packet of a sweet brand available in Spain and Portugal.
The FA wrote to the club asking for their observations over the social media post, which was subsequently deleted.
And Goal can confirm that Silva personally wrote a response, saying that he had not intended to cause offence.
Mendy, who seemed to see the funny side of Silva’s joke and replied with laughing emojis, has also written a letter to the FA in support of his team-mate.
City boss Pep Guardiola again defended his player insisting there was no intent to cause offence in his tweet.
“We spoke many times about what happened in stadiums, regarding Bernardo I was incredibly clear. If the people believe Bernardo is this type of person they are completely wrong," he told a news conference.
"They judge one joke, I judge three years with him.
“Bernardo, or anyone else in my squad, do this thing for a joke. Benjamin is like a brother to Bernardo, that is what I see every single day here.
“If someone feels bad for that tweet it can happen, but the people who judge Bernardo don’t know him.
"He’s an exceptional person. He likes to be involved in different situations.
“It’s a cartoon and the face is quite similar. The same happened a thousand, million times with white people.
“It was just a joke and that’s all. But if the people in the FA think it’s the opposite then Bernardo and City are open to listen and to say an opinion.”
The FA could potentially send Silva on an educational course but also have the power to hand him with a six-match ban.