Barcelona to monitor Bernardo Silva, Ilkay Gundogan at the World Cup

Barcelona will reportedly keep tabs on Manchester City duo Ilkay Gundogan and Bernardo Silva at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

According to a report from Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona are keen on signing Ilkay Gundogan when his contract expires. And the Catalan giants could look to make a move for Bernardo Silva from Manchester City as well.

German international Gundogan is out of contract in the summer, and Manchester City have not been able to agree on a contract extension with him yet. The 32-year-old remains a key player for the Premier League champions, and he could prove to be a quality acquisition for Barcelona on a free transfer.

Despite being 32, Gundogan is still a top-class player who can play at the highest level for a couple of seasons at the very least. The German midfielder played a key role in Manchester City winning the Premier League title last season, and he would be a massive upgrade on players like Franck Kessie.

The Catalan giants will be able to secure a pre-contract agreement with the midfielder when the January transfer window opens. Recent reports have claimed that Manchester City have held “loose talks” over a new deal with Gundogan while also facing concerns on the future of Bernardo Silva.

Speaking of, Bernardo Silva has a contract with Manchester City until the summer of 2025. It will be interesting to see whether Barcelona can negotiate a reasonable fee with the Premier League side.

The report from Mundo Deportivo claims that the Portuguese international could cost around €80 million. Barcelona will have to sell some of their fringe players in order to make the move happen. Meanwhile, Manchester City will not stand in Silva’s way if he wants to join Barcleona.

The Blaugrana had financial problems in the summer, but they have managed to neutralise the situation to some extent. Both Bernardo Silva and Ilkay Gundogan have been exceptional players for Manchester City, and losing both of them in one window could be a major blow for Pep Guardiola.

Manchester City are powerless to stop the German international from leaving because of his contract situation. But they could easily prevent the sale of Bernardo Silva, because he has three years left on his current contract with them. It will be interesting to see how the situation develops over the next few months.