BARCELONA have launched a joint loan bid for TWO Manchester City stars just days before the Premier League is about to kick off.
Spanish outlet Sport report that Barcelona are “very interested” in acquiring both Bernardo Silva and Joao Cancelo ahead of their season opener against Getafe this Sunday.
The Catalan club hold a long standing interest in both players.
Barca pushed hard to sign Silva last season when it looked as though the midfielder would leave the Etihad.
In Cancelo’s case, Barcelona tried to sign him in January after the full-back fell out with manager Pep Guardiola, but he ultimately joined Bayern Munich on loan.
Barcelona are set for a cash injection once Ousmane Dembele’s transfer to PSG is completed and view the Manchester City players as an ideal way to reinvest the cash.
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Both Cancelo and Silva have operated in Dembele’s vacant right-wing position in the past but it is likely that Silva would play in Barca’s midfield three and Cancelo would play his preferred role of right-back.
The report says that Barcelona would include a mandatory buy clause of £60million at the end of Silva’s loan deal.
Silva’s City contract is set to expire in the summer of 2025.
Sport say that City while City are open to letting Cancelo leave the club, they are not interested in selling Silva, particularly having already lost Riyad Mahrez this summer.
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City have been linked with Palace’s Michael Olise and Rennes’ Jeremy Doku as they look to replace Mahrez – but Silva has operated off the right-wing in the past and started there during Sunday’s Community shield defeat to Arsenal.
Cancelo, though, is free to leave the club and has reportedly already agreed personal terms with Barca.
City will look to bounce back from Sunday’s penalty shootout defeat against Arsenal when they kick off their Premier League campaign away at Burnley on Friday night.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
