Man City star with ‘affordable’ release clause is ‘offered’ to Real Madrid amid Barcelona interest

Lewis Oldham
Man City transfer
Erling Haaland alongside Bernardo Silva.

According to reports, Manchester City standout Bernardo Silva has been ‘offered’ to Spanish giants Real Madrid ahead of this summer’s transfer window.

Man City invested an initial fee of around £43m to sign Silva from Ligue Un outfit AS Monaco ahead of the 2017/18 campaign.

Will Silva leave in the summer?

The Portugal international has proven to be an outstanding signing for the Premier League side as he has been a hugely important player for them during Pep Guardiola‘s reign at the Etihad.

Silva has made just short of 350 appearances for Man City and he continues to be a valuable asset. So far this season, he has nine goals and five in 38 outings across all competitions.

Despite this, the 29-year-old could leave Man City in the summer. Towards the end of last year, he penned a one-year contract extension to extend his deal until 2026 but this is understood to include a release clause.

Earlier this week, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano pointed out that there is a £50m exit clause in his deal. He tweeted: “Reminder… Bernardo Silva has £50m release clause into his Man City contract valid starting from this summer.”

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According to a report from Spanish outlet Don Diaro, Silva’s agent – Jorge Mendes – is ‘talking to Barcelona’ about the Man City star but he ‘could end up at Real Madrid’.

It’s claimed that Mendes is ‘offering Silva to Real Madrid for 58 million euros’. While this is considered an ‘affordable’ price, it is suggested that ‘the age of the player and the overbooking that the white team has in the midfield may suggest that this operation has little chance of being carried out’.

Regarding Barcelona’s interest in Silva, it’s claimed that club president Joao Laporta ‘is looking for a coup d’état, which helps mitigate the impact that the signing of Kylian Mbappé for Real Madrid may have on Barcelona’ and the Man City star ‘could be’ looked at with Erling Haaland ‘unattainable right now’.

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Silva demands

A report from Spanish publication Nacional suggests Silva’s current value is ‘unaffordable’ for Barcelona but if he is to leave Man City, he wants two factors to be clarified. They explain.

‘First, he wants to know who his new [Barcelona] coach will be before making a decision.

‘In addition, the difference between his value and the price for which he would leave would like to see it compensated in a good salary, which would make his registration in the League even more difficult.’