Barcelona manager Xavi is not giving up on signing Bernardo Silva from Manchester City but accepts it will be difficult to get a deal done after Pep Guardiola ruled out selling the Portuguese last week.
Bernardo scored in City's 4-2 victory over Crystal Palace on Saturday afternoon, with Guardiola's side coming from behind to win thanks to a hat-trick from Erling Haaland.
The midfielder has been a target for Barcelona all summer, and the Portuguese international featured for City in the friendly match in aid of ALS research against the La Liga club on Wednesday evening. However, with the Blaugrana unable to move many players on from Camp Nou, a move away from City appears unlikely for Bernardo.
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Guardiola insisted that the midfielder will not leave the club this summer, with the player having helped City win four Premier League titles in the past five seasons.
However, while Xavi admitted that completing any deal for Bernardo would be ‘difficult’, he refused to rule out the possibility of a deal being concluded in the closing days of the transfer window.
"You never lose hope, but it's difficult. It's complicated. We're only a few days away. We must have players leaving too," Xavi said.
Barcelona have made a number of additions this summer, with Andreas Christensen, Franck Kessie, Raphinha, Robert Lewandowski and Jules Kounde all arriving at the club.
Bernardo, who has registered 49 goals in 255 appearances for City since joining from Monaco in 2017, has won nine major honours with the Blues.
The creative midfielder made a career-high 33 Premier League starts and scored eight Premier League goals last season, while also starting in 11 of the club's 12 Champions League matches.
Although Xavi is a big fan of the 28-year-old, and is desperate to sign the player, any move away from the Etihad appears unlikely in the final few days of the transfer window.
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