As Man Utd completes a Frenkie de Jong transfer breakthrough, Barcelona affirms the possibility of a swap.

Barcelona appears to already be making plans without Frenkie de Jong, a top transfer target for Manchester United, as they have chosen Xavi to be his replacement.

Manchester United has made progress in their pursuit of Barcelona’s Frenkie de Jong this summer while the Catalan giants indicate they already have a replacement in mind.

Even though contract negotiations are already in their third month and the start of the 2022–23 season is less than a week away, United has not lost up on a deal to sign the Dutch international star.

Richard Arnold and John Murtough, the Red Devils’ transfer coordinators, went to the Catalan capital last month to meet with Barca representatives and finalize the De Jong transfer. However, they left without reaching a binding agreement. However, a £56.2 million initial fee is in place, with a maximum transfer of £72 million.

After a story in Mundo Deportivo detailed how he was at the top of the club’s wish list to replace De Jong, Barca president Laporta has now acknowledged that the team will try to sign City star Silva. The Portugal international could theoretically take the place of the former Ajax star in the club’s midfield, despite frequently playing in a front three for City.

When asked explicitly about a transfer for Silva on Monday during the introduction of defender Kounde, who was acquired from Sevilla: “The players must first be registered, and those who don’t count must be removed. After that, we’ll assess our options.” It wasn’t a complete denial of a move, but it was close enough to douse any rumors in doubt.

Since joining City from Monaco in 2017, Silva has scored 48 goals while making 251 first-team appearances. Silva has benefited from Guardiola’s direction. His significance increased last season, though, as he made a career-high 33 Premier League starts, scored eight Premier League goals, and started 11 of the club’s 12 Champions League games.

Guardiola recognized Barca’s interest in the player earlier this year, but he did not seize the opportunity to rule out a trade despite his adamant desire to keep the star: “I believe Silva will remain today. However, as I have always stated throughout my time at Barcelona, I don’t want players who don’t want to play for my team. I’ll just note that Bernardo is important to us.

It is understandable why Barca manager Xavi Hernandez is a fan of Silva given that he played in 50 games for City last season, when he scored 13 goals and provided seven assists. Laporta’s first priority for this season is signing fresh players.

Raphinha, Robert Lewandowski, Andreas Christensen, Franck Kessie, Kounde, and all of these players joined Barcelona this summer as the team aimed to instantly fight for major honors after a three-season La Liga title drought and without a Champions League final appearance since 2015.