La Liga giants Barcelona have reportedly opened talks with Manchester City playmaker Bernardo Silva over a summer move.
Spanish outlet COPE has reported that Barcelona are looking at Manchester City playmaker Bernardo Silva as a potential replacement for Frenkie de Jong. The Dutchman is reportedly close to joining Manchester United and has already agreed on personal terms with them.
The Blaugrana have been forced to sell some of their first-team players over the last couple of seasons to free their wage bill and register new signings. Lionel Messi’s sale was a part of the same issue and Frenkie de Jong seems the one facing a premature exit from Barcelona this summer.
The Dutchman played under Erik ten Hag at Ajax, with the Manchester United manager now eager for a reunion. While de Jong was initially reluctant to join Manchester United, who failed to qualify for next season’s UEFA Champions League, ten Hag has managed to convince the midfielder to make the move to Old Trafford.
The only thing stalling the deal is that the two clubs are yet to agree on the transfer fee. Barcelona are hoping to recoup most or all of the €75 million they paid for the Dutch playmaker in 2019 and have reportedly rejected Manchester United’s first offer of €60 million plus €10 million in add-ons. The Red Devils are now preparing an improved offer.
But Manchester United are confident that Barcelona will ultimately lower their demands, and the move will go through. It would leave Barcelona with a big gap in the midfield, and they believe Manchester City playmaker Bernardo Silva can fill that.
The Portuguese midfielder has been with Manchester City since 2017, and he still has three years remaining on his current deal with the club. However, as per COPE, Silva’s agent, Jorge Mendes, has already held the first round of discussions with Barcelona president Joan Laporta.
The 27-year-old Manchester City playmaker is second on the list of Barcelona’s priorities, with Robert Lewandowski still their primary target. The Blaugrana are hoping to complete the Polish striker’s signing from Bayern Munich before July 15 so that he can travel with the rest of the squad on the pre-season campaign.
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Barcelona are also eager to sign Jules Kounde from Sevilla but will have to fend off interest from Chelsea for his signature. As for the pursuit of Silva, it will be interesting to see if Barcelona will manage to prise the Portuguese midfielder away from Manchester City this summer.
