- Bernardo Silva will be a free agent on June 30 after reportedly deciding to leave Manchester City.
- Catalan sources say the Portuguese has offered himself to FC Barcelona and is waiting for their offer.
- The Blaugrana have been linked to Silva in past summers, but could never offered his transfer fee.
Manchester City legend Bernardo Silva has decided to leave Manchester City and, through super agent Jorge Mendes, has offered his services to FC Barcelona according to SPORT.
The Portuguese playmaker’s contract at the Etihad ends on June 30, after which he’ll effectively be a free agent capable of exercising the Bosman rule.
Currently free to negotiate with whoever he wishes as per FIFA transfer rules, the 31-year-old has reportedly had a mouth-watering offer from Saudi Arabia and a proposal from Juventus. Meanwhile, boyhood club Benfica is keen to welcome him back.
Above all, though, Silva is waiting for Barça to make a move. He’s all too aware that the club tried to buy him in past summer transfer windows during the Xavi Hernandez but could never raise this quoted €50 million price tag.
This time it’s different, though. Silva would potentially arrive at the Spotify Camp Nou free of charge in leiu of a transfer fee.
Furthermore, he’d consider taking a hefty pay cut to don Blaugrana and fulfil a dream amid already looking at houses in the Catalan capital where his sister-in-law lives.
FC Barcelona’s sport management department is split on Silva
It goes without saying that a player of Silva’s calibre arriving for nothing is a more than an attractive prospect.
But whereas before there was a shortage of talent in midfield at the Spotify Camp Nou, now it’s not the case.
Silva has often operated on the right wing, which at Barça is occupied by Lamine Yamal. Yet according to SPORT and its trusted correspondent Luis Miguelsanz, Hansi Flick and his staff reportedly see Silva as a more interior midfielder.
In that he has direct competition with Pedri, or, though Silva is more attacking, any one of the Spain international’s partners such as a rising Marc Bernal in fine, goalscoring form and the soon-to-return Frenkie de Jong.
Were he to go for the CAM/’10’ role, however, the likes of Fermin Lopez, Gavi and Dani Olmo would all be willing to fight him for minutes.
FC Barcelona has to make a decision on Silva soon
With the World Cup fast approaching, Silva wants his situation resolved before the competition, where he’ll represent Portugal in North America, kicks off on June 11th.
Even if he isn’t a guaranteed starter in Catalonia, there are advantages in having an experienced profile of his nature in and around the first team squad.
Silva’s winning mentality and brutally honest approach are bound to have a positive impact on a young locker room.
Furthermore, his relentless approach on the pitch would give Flick a proven champion with a competitive engine that suits the German’s hard-pressing brand of attacking football.
