Man City attach eye-watering price tag to midfield star linked with Barcelona

Manchester City have reportedly attached an £80m price tag to Bernardo Silva amid interest from Spanish giants Barcelona.

Silva, 27, was heavily linked with a move away from City last summer but ended up staying put and went on to win another Premier League title under Pep Guardiola.

Barcelona were keen on the Portuguese international but could not meet City’s asking price of £60m, while rumours of a move to Tottenham Hotspur, as part of a deal for Harry Kane, did not materialise.

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Barca are now thought to have reignited their interest in Silva as they look to find a replacement for Frenkie de Jong, who could well be sold to Manchester United this summer.

City, though, are unwilling to part ways with Silva after his stellar performances last season. According to the Mirror, they have increased their valuation of the playmaker to at least £80m in order to ward off any interest.

This could, in turn, have a serious impact on United’s pursuit of De Jong, because if Barca are unable to find a suitable replacement for the midfielder then they will be less willing to sell.

According to former Liverpool striker Stan Collymore, United shouldn’t be going after De Jong anyway. He described the transfer as “underwhelming” and claimed De Jong could be the new Donny van de Beek.

“Manchester United’s pursuit of Frenkie De Jong is completely underwhelming,” he told the Mirror.

“Don’t get me wrong, De Jong is a good player, he has all the attributes and would be a decent addition to the squad. But I ask myself if he’s someone who will take United to the next level and the answer, frankly, is, ‘No’. Actually, he reminds me of his compatriot Donny van de Beek.

“I know Van de Beek didn’t get the opportunities he deserved at United and De Jong will be given a chance by Erik ten Hag. But if I’m at Liverpool or Manchester City, then I’m certainly not going to be worrying that Manchester United look likely to sign Frenkie de Jong this summer.”