Laporta asked about Barcelona interest in Bernardo Silva and possible €80m transfer

Barcelona president Joan Laporta has outlined a strong stance from the viewpoint of the club in regards to potential interest in Manchester City’s Bernardo Silva.

Barcelona and City have an excellent relationship overall, due to the significant links between the Manchester side and Barcelona.

Camp Nou had been mooted as one possible landing spot for the the Portuguese midfielder during the most recent summer transfer window.

This week, the Portuguese midfielder has once again admitted to seeking a move away from the Etihad Stadium, revealing a desire to return to Benfica before his physical capabilities are not able to offer anything significant on the field to his former side.

The Premier League champions have insisted on securing a fee in excess of €80 million, given Bernardo Silva’s strong contractual situation in east Manchester.

Barcelona president Joan Laporta has doubled down on the Catalan club not being willing to sanction a deal for Bernardo Silva at the aforementioned asking price.

Speaking to Que t’hi Jugues in an interview on Thursday, Barcelona President Joan Laporta directly addressed those rumours.

“We will not pay 80 million for Bernardo Silva. That is certain. Haaland? We’ll see how he does it at City, at the moment we have Lewandowski who is doing very well.”

Manchester City would be well within their rights to demand a fee in that region, given the quality of the player. Pep Guardiola have always prided themselves on letting players that are unhappy leave though, and it may be that Laporta was floating that idea as manifestation of his desire to see the price drop. All of is of course redundant if Silva does not push for an exit.

For now, Bernardo Silva’s main focus will stay with Pep Guardiola’s side and aiming to secure the club’s first ever Champions League trophy, with Bundesliga outfit RB Leipzig awaiting in the round of 16 – which gets underway next month.

City travel to Chelsea this week in an attempt to cut down the gap between themselves and Arsenal to five points, after Mikel Arteta’s league leaders were held to a 0-0 home draw by Newcastle United earlier this week.