Bernardo Silva Remains FC Barcelona’s Top Objective To Sign In 2023

Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva remains FC Barcelona’s top transfer target and priority to sign in 2023.

The Portuguese international was linked to the Blaugrana in the summer transfer window, yet the Catalans were unable to meet his monstrous €100mn ($97mn) fee.

This was mainly down to the amount of cash that had been spent on the likes of Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha and Jules Kounde.

But it was also suggested by many outlets that Barca needed to sell Frenkie de Jong to get a deal over the line for Silva.

City’s cross-city rivals Manchester United agreed a €85mn ($83mn) deal for the Dutchman in July, but De Jong turned down their advances due to Erik ten Hag’s men’s lack of Champions League football and a desire to succeed at Camp Nou under head coach Xavi Hernandez.

With Sergio Busquets set to leave at the end of the season, De Jong has been tipped to replace the captain in the pivot role.

Teenagers Gavi and Pedri are tied down to long-term contracts with €1bn ($968bn) release clauses, but Mundo Deportivo report on Monday that Xavi still wishes to have another ‘crack’ in his midfield that brings maturity to the center of the park and charges at goal.

Due to these factors, Silva remains Barcelona’s top target for this area of the pitch, and with a contract that runs until June 2025, next summer could be the last window that City get to make decent money from his sale.

If they were to leave the ball rolling any further and not tie him down to new terms, he could then leave for a cut price ahead of the 2024/2025 season in order to stop him walking from the Etihad for free 12 months later.

Aged 27, the multi-faceted playmaker is entering his prime and has also made his desire clear to leave the PremierPINC
League as long as City and their fans are respected in any arrangement that involves his departure.

MD believe that Silva’s starting price would be around €80mn ($77.6mn), which would then rise to €100mn ($97mn) once bonuses and add-ons have been factored in.