Pep Guardiola has confirmed that Bernardo Silva will not leave Manchester City this summer despite strong interest from Barcelona in the midfielder's services. The 2x-year-old has been heavily linked with a move to the Camp Nou after having been identified as a replacement for Frenkie de Jong, who has been closely followed by Chelsea.
football.london understand that the Blues have liked the idea of signing the Netherlands international for a few years now. The west Londoners were said to face competition from Manchester United for the 25-year-old's signature, with Tuchel once confident of beating Erik ten Hag to a deal.
It's also understood that the Blues have been in talks with De Jong over a potential move to Stamford Bridge as the German boss looks to arm his midfield with more creativity. However, with the Premier League champions seemingly pulling out of a deal which sees Barcelona welcome a ready-made replacement, it could now be harder for Chelsea to engineer a deal for the Dutchman.
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Speaking to the press ahead of City's clash with Crystal Palace this weekend, Guardiola was insistent that Silva would not be leaving the Etihad Stadium this summer. The Spaniard said: "He will stay here. Absolutely. We don't have any phone call from any club regarding Bernardo Silva so that is why he stays - but I tell you, he will stay."
De Jong, who sees his contract at Barcelona expire in 2026, is said to earn close to £360,000-per-week, making him one of the best-paid players at the club. But, the Spanish giants owe him £17million in deferred wages from the pandemic, according to The Telegraph.
But, despite Barcelona's well-documented financial troubles, as quoted by the Mirror last month, club chief Joan Laporta insisted that De Jong is not for sale: "Frenkie de Jong is a Barcelona player. We don't want to sell him unless we have no other choice.
"Of course, we know there are offers for De Jong, but we don't want to sell him. There are clubs that want him, not just United. We have no intention of selling him, he wants to stay.
"Frenkie is considered as one of the best midfielders in the world by all the experts. We are happy to have him. I'm going to do everything I can in my power so that Frenkie stays here, but there's also a salary issue, and that would have to be adjusted."
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