Barcelona apparently does not want to pay Manchester City’s release clause to recruit one of their players this summer.
During the previous summer transfer window, the La Liga club signed Ilkay Gundogan for free and secured a season-long loan agreement for Joao Cancelo.
However, some behind-the-scenes information has surfaced about another City figure who is on their radar ahead of the next summer season.
According to a recent AS report, Barcelona still considers Bernardo Silva a transfer target for this summer, however he is not a priority.
They also believe the £50 million release clause in his contract is exorbitant and may only make a play for the 29-year-old if they sell first.
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According to the source, Xavi, who has opted to remain as Barcelona’s manager for the next season, is still a great fan of Silva after attempting to persuade him to join the Spanish club last summer.
Since joining Manchester City in the 2017 summer transfer window for £43 million, the midfielder has made 349 appearances in all competitions.
Silva has 66 goals and 62 assists in 349 games, and he has won various local and European championships.
Bernardo Silva has shown himself to be a key player for City.
With 37 starts in 43 games this season, it’s evident that the midfielder, who earns £300,000 each week, is an important member of the club.
In fact, after seeing him score the winning goal in City’s 1-0 FA Cup semi-final win over Chelsea last weekend, Pep Guardiola stated that he feels “safe” and “comfortable” when the Portuguese international is on the pitch because of Silva’s intelligence and intuitive ability to keep the ball.
With all of this in mind, we believe that if Barcelona is unwilling to pay the release clause in the City star’s contract, they should abandon their pursuit of him.