admin Manchester City will find it hard to replace Bernardo Silva if he leaves this summer, and may already have the best substitute.
Manchester City’s midfield revolution can’t be as massive as it was at the start of the summer.
Ilkay Gundogan may be gone but Kalvin Phillips has made it clear his intention to stay in the fight and there has been no move on Bernardo Silva’s exit door yet.
The Portugal international who has just held a wedding is looking to leave for the third summer in a row, but has yet to find a club that is right for the parties.
That is not to say that Bernardo is definitely not leaving and City are keeping their options open in the transfer market for the time being.
There’s no shortage of midfielders that Pep Guardiola appreciates, and after showing enough interest in Declan Rice to make a £90m bid before giving in to Arsenal, there are still some targets left; Celta midfielder Gabri Veiga is one of the most interesting names on the list.
As City’s boss said, no one can do the job Bernardo does like this man himself – play in multiple positions at a high level and happily do whatever is asked to help. football team.
Replacing these qualities will not be easy. In fact, arguably the best homogenous swap happened on Guardiola’s team at this point six years ago: Phil Foden.
Having emerged as one of the academy’s most promising talents playing in central midfield, the England star has spent most of his time in the first team in part because he is still learning what coaching means. The officer asked to be in the center but also because he carried a threat. attack that few can match.
The arrival of Erling Haaland may reduce the need to play with Foden up front, but he is still a quality attacking factor playing on either flank, notably tearing United’s net against Haaland in won 6-3 in the derby and left Dan Burn helpless. to inspire a win over Newcastle.
Only Haaland and Julian Alvarez scored more than his 15 goals in all competitions last season. The plan for Foden was to eventually put him in that pivotal role, and it is remarkable that Guardiola used him to replace the injured Kevin De Bruyne in the Champions League final with just an hour left. competition. The end of the season showed that the 23-year-old was never ready to go further, although he also excelled against Brighton from a wider position.
However, with Mateo Kovacic coming in to take a few minutes in between and Phillips determined to get more game time, the best position for Foden this year could still be Bernardo’s floating role – especially if co-star His team was sold – from moving between midfield and wing.
With the Blues unlikely to sign a new winger, Riyad Mahrez and Jack Grealish will need some serious competition for a starting spot if City are to maintain their high standards. Stockport Iniesta can still be Bramhall Bernardo.
