Barcelona manager Xavi ‘has not forgotten’ about Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva but City’s demands ‘are not within’ the Catalan club’s reach.
That’s according to Sport and Mundo Deportivo, who say that Manchester City are not making it easy for Barcelona to get the player in the summer.
Sport explain that Xavi wanted to sign Silva last summer as he would help to make any absences for Pedri less of a problem.
The issue, though, is that the Portuguese midfielder has a contract at the Etihad until 2025 and their ‘demands’ are not within Barcelona’s reach at this moment in time.
Mundo go into a little more detail, explaining that financial fair play is once again playing a role in transfer decisions and making a move for Silva an issue.
Xavi has been ‘asking’ for his signing for two seasons, but a deal is ‘practically impossible’ because Manchester City ‘will not make it easy’ to sell a player who they consider indispensable.
Silva has made it clear to those in charge at the Etihad that he wants to leave and would be ‘delighted’ to move to the Camp Nou but Barcelona cannot afford an operation that would cost €70-80m before taking the player’s wages into account. He will not reduce the package he earns in Manchester.
For him to move, it seems Manchester City need to lower their demands, something they are seemingly not yet willing to do.
