Barcelona ‘remain keen to sign Bernardo Silva after agreeing personal terms with the Man City star’
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Barcelona ‘remain keen to sign Bernardo Silva after agreeing personal terms with the Manchester City star’… but Nou Camp chiefs ‘must balance their books before targeting a £60m deal – and Pep Guardiola’s side will NOT make it easy in negotiations’
- Barcelona still plan on signing Manchester City’s Bernardo Silva this summer
- But Pep Guardiola’s side will not make it easy as they bid to keep hold of Silva
- Guardiola is usually unwilling to hold on to players who want to leave the Etihad
- However with the end of the window approaching he will struggle to replace him
- Barcelona began the new LaLiga season with a 0-0 draw against Rayo Vallecano
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Barcelona are still planning a move for Bernardo Silva this summer despite not yet being able to register all their summer signings due to LaLiga’s financial regulations.
The Blaugrana view Portuguese midfielder Silva as the icing on the cake for their summer recruitment and, according to Sport, they have been in contact with the player for weeks and have a pre-contract agreement in place.
However with their corpulent wage bill as yet balanced they have been unable to register £45million defender Jules Kounde so any move for the Portugal international can surely only take place once that issue is solved.
Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva is a target for Barcelona despite financial issues
Xavi’s side will move for Silva once they are able to balance their books
It has long been Pep Guardiola’s modus operandi to let players leave if they do not want to be a part of his squad, with the likes of Leroy Sane and Ferran Torres recent examples of this.
With Silva coming close to an exit last summer, there is an agreement between the player and his manager that he will be allowed to leave this summer should a good offer arrive, according to Sport.
It is believed an offer of around £60m, plus the obligatory performance based add-ons, would be enough to land their man, who has played only 37 minutes so far in City’s opening two games this season.
It is unclear how Xavi’s side will be able to afford yet another big-money move, having already sold portions of their own in-house production company to finance their £127m summer spree, and even that has not been enough to register all five players.
Marca and AS attacked Barca’s disappointing 0-0 opening day draw against Rayo Vallecano
But on this occasion the Santpedor coach looks set to change his ways and keep Silva at the Etihad, largely because it would be difficult to bring in a replacement with the end of the transfer window fast approaching.
Guardiola has shown that Silva is one of the key players in his squad in recent seasons, with the Portuguese being crucial to his side’s Premier League victory last time out, despite not always starting due to the infamous ‘Pep Roulette’.
City are adamant they have received no contact from Barca and it will surely prove too difficult for Barca to land their target this summer, despite an Instagram post potentially hinting at an end to his Etihad career.
Pep Guardiola is usually happy to let players leave but looks set to change his ways with Silva
In the post made by the player himself, Silva appeared to thank the City faithful for all the love and support they have shown him in the past following their 4-0 mauling of Bournemouth, and he was the last player to leave the pitch applauding the fans.
For Barca, though, the need for Silva is clear. Having struggled in a limp 0-0 opening day draw to Rayo Vallecano, Xavi has been vocal of his need for further recruitment despite already adding five signings including Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha.
Silva has shown time and time again under Guardiola that he can do exactly that, combining brilliant ball skills, agile dribbling and clinical finishing to produce 48 goals and 50 assists in his 252 City appearances.
