Manchester City have reportedly rejected a £59million offer from Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain for playmaker Bernardo Silva.
Pep Guardiola's side do not want to sell Silva, 28, as he's viewed as an integral part of the squad. The Portugal international has helped City achieve huge success since his move from Monaco five years ago, winning 11 trophies - including four Premier League titles.
Silva's stats speak form themselves. He's scored 30 goals and provided 31 assists in 169 Premier League games for City. He's also versatile, capable of playing anywhere in the front three and in midfield. Guardiola has admitted he doesn't want him to go.
According to The Times, City have turned down a £59m offer from PSG. It's believed Guardiola's side are concerned about selling the player to a direct Champions League rival. Both City and PSG are aiming to win their maiden European Cup this season.
Silva was successful during his three-year spell in France, scoring 11 goals during his final season at Monaco to help them pip PSG to the Ligue 1 title. PSG are dominating domestically, with only Monaco and Lille denying them the title during the last 10 seasons.
City have slapped an £80m valuation on Silva, with Barcelona hoping to get him for around £60m. The Spanish giants are the favourites to sign him - despite PSG's interest - and it's believed he's interested in moving to the Camp Nou in the coming days.
Do you think Bernardo Silva will leave Manchester City this month? Let us know in the comments below!
Guardiola has even admitted he can't stop Silva joining Barcelona, if he wishes to do so. It's thought the La Liga hopefuls are yet to table a concrete offer and the player has not told Guardiola he wants to quit the Etihad.
"I'm no one to tell Barca to forget about [signing] Bernardo," said Guardiola after City's friendly against Barcelona in Spain on Wednesday. "We want him to stay with us, but I don't want anyone who's not happy. The first thing would be for the clubs to come to an agreement, but there has been no offer for him in these last two years.
"I don't want him to go, he's a superlative player and a great person... and there are only seven or eight days left [in the window] and we would have to turn to the transfer market. I want him to stay. That said, it is true Bernardo likes Barcelona a lot."
City have already said goodbye to Raheem Sterling, Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko this summer and won't want to lose another senior player. In terms of recruitment, they've signed Erling Haaland, Stefan Ortega, Kalvin Phillips and Sergio Gomez.
PSG have brought in five players since the start of the window, all aged 25 and under. They are Nuno Mendes, Vitinha, Hugo Ekitike, Nordi Mukiele and Renato Sanches. The likes of Angel Di Maria, Georginio Wijnaldum and Ander Herrera have all departed the French capital.
Barcelona have completed a huge recruitment drive this summer, signing Pablo Torre, Franck Kessie, Andreas Christensen, Raphinha, Robert Lewandowski and Jules Kounde. They've also shifted some players off their books, including Riqui Puig and Neto.
