Barcelona are considering a move for Manchester City’s Bernardo Silva in January, with Gerard Pique’s retirement opening up space in the budget for them to do so.
That’s according to Sport, who say Pique’s shock retirement ‘opens the door’ for Silva, who ‘wants to come’ but may struggle to convince Manchester City.
The Catalan giants are planning a ‘red-hot’ January transfer window, with the failure in the Champions League meaning they need a strong second half of the campaign.
Pique’s retirement, which he announced to the surprise of all on Thursday evening, means they have been left with ‘plenty of room’ in the wage bill to secure the signing of a top star.
The clear objective is to sign a midfielder and potentially a centre-back and a right-back as well, but it is the former and Silva they are focused on.
Silva’s name has been on the table at the Nou Camp since the summer, when his agent, Jorge Mendes, made it clear that the player wants to wear the Blaugrana shirt.
He even asked to leave Manchester City, but everything was put on hold due to the club’s spend on other positions and the frustrated sale of Frenkie de Jong to Manchester United.
The new, ‘clear plan’ had been to go for Silva or Lionel Messi at the end of the season but unlike the Argentine, who will be offered new terms by PSG, they consider the Manchester City star as ‘viable’ in terms of transfer fees and salary.
The latter is helped by Pique’s departure, which has opened the door to a deal that will now be ‘activated’ in the coming weeks.
The club’s sports department will meet shortly to analyse all the options set priorities, but they are clear that if there is a chance to sign Silva, they are ‘not going to waste it’.
