Barcelona turn to cheaper option at Man City with £60m Bernardo Silva too expensive

Ilkay Gundogan is now very much a top summer transfer target for cash-strapped Barcelona, who want to sign the Manchester City midfielder instead of playmaker Bernardo Silva

Posted Sunday, April 02, 2023 by Dailystar.co.uk

Pep Guardiola could still have Bernardo Silva at his disposal next season

Barcelona are stepping up the hunt for Ilkay Gundogan - while ending interest in fellow Manchester City ace Bernardo Silva.

Both Etihad midfielders have been on the radar of the Spanish giants for the best part of a year.

However, due to their ongoing financial crisis, Barcelona have decided they cannot afford the £60million required to prise Silva away from the English champions.

The Portuguese playmaker, 28, still has more than two years left on his City contract - and seemingly remains an important piece in Pep Guardiola’s squad.

As does City skipper Gundogan, of course. The German has been equally integral to the club’s Treble chase this season.

But the ex-Borussia Dortmund man’s current deal runs out at the end this season and he will be a free agent this summer.

And, even at 32, that makes the four-time Premier League title winner a far more attractive proposition than Silva for the cash-strapped runaway La Liga leaders.

Gundogan’s representatives were in Barcelona during the recent international break to discuss the increasingly-likely switch.

Meanwhile, Barcelona have informed Silva’s advisors that a big-money transfer to the Nou Camp is no longer on the cards for the former Monaco and Benfica ace.