In the wake of Manchester City’s recent Barclays Premier League defeat by Liverpool, the first thing the club’s Brazilian midfielder Fernando did was seek out compatriot Philippe Coutinho.

‘I wanted to say ‘‘well done’’ to him after his winning goal,’ revealed Fernando.

‘To me, he is the best Brazilian playing in Europe at the moment.’

Elsewhere at Anfield, the criticism of the City midfield that had started after the home defeat by Barcelona four days earlier was being cranked up to the next level.

Fernando admits he is finding life in the Premier League tough in his first season since moving from Porto

Fernando (right) and Fernandinho (left) attends a Disability Awareness Workshop with local kids on Thursday

Fernando says Liverpool's Philippe Coutinho, tracked by his mate Fernandinho, is the best current Europe-based Brazilian player

According to those on TV paid to know, City had lost back-to-back games simply because of failings in central midfield.

Fernando played in the first game and not the second. Was he, therefore, at least partly culpable for setbacks that seem to have done so much to damage City’s aspirations at home and in the Champions League?

Fernando: 'I haven’t reached my level here yet and the language is a problem'

‘It’s really hard,’ Fernando admitted on Thursday. ‘I haven’t reached my level here yet and the language is a problem. The Premier League is very challenging.

‘This season has gone OK, I think, but I’m hoping my next season will be a lot better. It was really difficult against Barcelona. We were not playing a normal team.

‘We want to get to that level but we need to learn if we are going to be successful in the Champions League. We know we can win in Barcelona. But having an attacking mentality won’t help us if we go over the top with that. Our mentality has to be right.

‘The criticism will always come if things aren’t going well. It can be aimed at the strikers or the defence and now at this time it is the midfield. It shouldn’t do but that is just what happens.’

City’s shot at European redemption comes next Wednesday at the Nou Camp.

Manuel Pellegrini’s team trail 2-1 and need a huge result if they are going to become an isolated Premier League representative in the last eight.

At home, City trail Chelsea in the Premier League by five points and have played a game more. On Tuesday, Fernando watched Jose Mourinho’s team exit Europe in a rather feisty game at Stamford Bridge.

On a night more memorable for needle than football, it was tempting to wonder if Chelsea were beginning to show signs of frailty.

The Brazilian midfielder has come under fire as part of the under-performing City midfield, but showed some skills playing sitting volleyball for school children in Manchester

Fernando, who says mentality will be the most important factor for City in their bid to turn around a 2-1 margin against Barcelona in the Champions League last-16, attempts to play football with a blindfold

Certainly Fernando revealed he could not imagine his City team-mates hounding a referee in similar fashion. He did, however, have an interesting take on why some footballers - including friends such as David Luiz, Oscar and Thiago Silva - behave the way they do.

‘It’s not something that would happen in our team,’ he told Sportsmail. ‘We are mainly a very calm team that concentrates on actually trying to win the game on the pitch.

‘We play according to whatever happens and we don’t try to change things by altering decisions and trying to influence the result that way.

The 27-year-old is assisted by a girl during the appearance as part of City in the Community

‘Every player has to hold things in. There are so many occasions when you actually want to say things but you must not.

‘At City I follow the example of people like James Milner, Joe Hart and Pablo Zabaleta. They are players who just try to play and not talk too much.

‘But you have to understand that the Champions League is a huge competition and the players were aware of that on Tuesday.

‘It was two great teams wanting to go through.

‘The players were aware of the investment each club had made so they had that pressure too.

‘The players were tense and that’s why these things happen. It’s adrenaline and tension.’

On Thursday at City’s training base, Fernando and his team-mate and fellow Brazilian Fernandinho took part in a Disability Awareness Workshop with local schoolchildren organised by the club’s City in the Community scheme.

So close are the two that when Fernandinho was chosen for random doping after training, his friend waited for him before arriving to take part in the event.

Fernando was also there at Anfield, of course, when Fernandinho and City captain Vincent Kompany had a rather frank exchange of views about what was going wrong.

‘In every team and every player there is a need to talk,’ he said. ‘It has to happen. It helps. We are working to improve when things are going wrong. It’s a quality and we will carry on with that.

'Fernandinho isn’t even a tiny bit upset about. It’s a story for a day and people like to talk but it means nothing to us.’

Back at home in Brazil, they are still coming to terms with their own bad news day. That came last July when the national team flunked a World Cup semi-final, losing 7-1 to Germany.

Fernando watched that game in a Brazilian restaurant in Manchester and put his hands to his head at mention of it yesterday.

Now 27, he has international aspirations of his own but knows he - and his country - have much to learn.

Chelsea players remonstrate with referee Bjorn Kuipers as he sends of Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Fernando attempts to hold off Leicester's Esteban Cambiasso as he continues to find his feet in England

‘It is really hard for Brazil now,’ he said. ‘We have had to learn a lesson from what happened.

‘The Germans and the Dutch have improved and we needed to realise that we have to catch up.

‘Tactically we have fallen behind. If I get called up then of course I will be extremely happy. I am focused on my performance here, though.

‘Every players needs time to get settled and get his status. This is what I am doing.’