Manchester City ‘will not stand in Bernardo Silva’s way’ if he insists he wants to leave this summer, according to reports.
The Portugal international was keen to join Barcelona last summer, who once again came calling for him in January. But, Guardiola insisted he would remain for this season at least.
However, it now seems that the Man City manager has had a change of heart, and will now allow Silva to leave the Etihad if he so desires.
This is according to 90min, who claim the attacker will not be prevented from leaving this summer.
They note that Guardiola has ‘long made it clear to his players that he does not want anyone to stay at Man City if they don’t want to. This is evidenced by the departures of Gabriel Jesus, Leroy Sane and Oleksandr Zinchenko.
Although, the Citizens will not let Silva leave cheaply. He is under contract until 2025, so they will demand his full market value, which is thought to be in the region of £75m.
Despite Guardiola’s policy of not forcing players to stay at Man City, they could find it difficult to replace Silva.
Since joining the club in 2017, he has made 298 appearances across all competitions – scoring 53 goals and making 58 assists in the process.
During that time, Silva has helped his team to four Premier League titles, an FA Cup and four League Cup victories.
