Manchester City could lose midfield talisman and club captain Bernardo Silva this month, according to an Italian football insider and former Premier League manager.
Silva has spent the past nine seasons with Manchester City, recently having the captaincy bestowed upon him by similarly long-serving boss Pep Guardiola.
However, it appears Silva could be on the move in the near future, if former West Ham United striker and Sunderland boss Paolo Di Canio is to be believed.
Bernardo Silva linked with Italian club in fresh Manchester City exit rumour
According to the controversial figure, Cesc Fabregas' impressive Como outfit could be Silva's next club.
“Like other top players who are no longer very young, he could come to our league,” Di Canio said after suggesting Silva's agency Gestifute, headed by super agent Jorge Mendes, have reportedly been exploring the possibility of moving their client to Italy.
“I didn’t necessarily say Napoli,” Di Canio said on Sky Calcio Club, when pressed on which team Silva was likely to join.
“It could be something more unusual, a team that plays possession football, a web of short passes, not exactly like [Manchester] City, but with similar principles," he added, which many have interpreted as a thinly-veiled reference to Como.
The northern Italian club are sixth in the Serie A table and owned by the Djarum Group, believed to be worth up to €40 billion, making Como the richest team in the country.
Como were in Italy's fourth tier, Serie D, as recently as 2019 but have enjoyed a meteoric rise under their present ownership structure and finished 10th in the top flight last season.
This year, led by ex-Chelsea and Arsenal midfielder Fabregas, the side are gunning for European qualification.
“Como can sign anyone. Anyone," Di Canio said. "With how intelligent they are, they can sign whoever they want, young players, even from the German second division, and turn them into protagonists straight away.”
Di Canio's slip of the tongue was followed up by an apology from the ex-Premier League striker, understood to be directed towards Silva's agent Mendes.
“Jorge, Jorge, forgive me - but this is Italy and I had to say it!"
In FourFourTwo's opinion, Como are one of the few clubs in world football who would be able to prise Bernardo away from East Manchester.
It is also a switch which makes sense at this stage of Silva's career without compromising on his earnings, as he approaches his 32nd birthday, having won all there is to win at Manchester City.
