Stephen Warnock has suggested that one Manchester City may look to leave the club this summer.
With only a handful of games left to play in the season, the Blues could end up getting their hands on another Premier League title and the FA Cup.
Even though a key period lies between now and the opening of the next summer transfer window, one pundit has highlighted one figure in Pep Guardiola’s side that could have a key role on the pitch over the next few weeks and then possibly be on the move in the summer.
Pundit says Man City player may leave in the summer
Speaking on Sky Sports, Warnock had this to say about Bernardo Silva when asked about how important he is for City and if he could find himself leaving the club in the summer.
He said: “A massive role. He’s such an integral player to the squad and the way Pep Guardiola wants to play.
“You can’t play a system without players with huge football intelligence in the way that Pep Guardiola plays it.
“He’s one of my favourite footballers of the Premier League era, he’s phenomenal. The work-rate off the ball, the way he tries to go about playing in the game.
“He’s got a nasty streak to him that a lot of people don’t like but I love that because he’s a winner in the way that he goes about things.
“He’ll get linked because he’s a quality player, everyone wants him. I don’t think there’s any smoke without fire because I think his agent has been touting him about a little bit.
“I think there might be an element of his partner wanting to move away back abroad, whether that’s to Spain or Portugal, wherever that might be, or France.
“Who knows, but City will do everything they can to try and keep hold of him, I’m sure of that. But there does come a point where a player might want a new challenge.
“We looked at [Ilkay] Gundogan last year and everyone thought why would you move away from Manchester City when you’ve just won the European Cup? He might just want a new challenge, himself, a fresh change.”
Could this be Bernardo Silva’s final season at Man City?
After being heavily linked with a move away from the Manchester club during the previous summer transfer window, the midfielder signed a contract extension until 2027.
However, it has since been reported that Silva has decided that he will leave City this summer as long as a club triggers the release clause in his contract.
Having started 36 of the 42 games he’s featured in across all competitions this season, it’s clear that he is a key figure for City.
In fact, after seeing him score the winner in the Manchester club’s recent 1-0 win over Chelsea in the semi-final of the FA Cup, Guardiola highlighted how important the 29-year-old is by saying this.
He said: “To have Bernardo on the pitch, I feel more safe, more comfortable. I’m so happy, he deserves the best.”
Taking all of that on board, if Silva does fancy a fresh challenge in his career and ends up moving away from City in the summer, it would be a big blow for them, in our view.