Silva reaches decision on Man City future after making "very important" request

Manchester City forward Bernardo Silva has decided to leave the Premier League champions this summer and complete a long-awaited move to Barcelona.

Bernardo, 29, has been quizzing Portugal team-mate Joao Felix about life at Barca and wants to wear the iconic No.10 shirt, formerly worn by Lionel Messi. The City star was tipped to join Barcelona in 2022 before speculation ramped up again last summer.

Talk of a move to Catalunya went quiet after Bernardo extended his contract until 2026 back in August, although it's since emerged that his deal includes a £50million release clause. Now that the summer transfer window is approaching and Felix has let the cat out of the bag, the Portuguese dynamo is said to be keen on finally joining Barcelona.

Catalan-based outlet Sport claim that Bernardo is 'crazy' about joining the La Liga giants and believes that his time at City is up, despite making 42 appearances this season. It's added that Barca boss Xavi held direct talks with the 29-year-old a year ago, although a move didn't materialise.

Xavi this week made a U-turn on his decision to leave Barcelona at the end of the season and Bernardo would have plenty of associates in the dressing room. They include ex-City team-mates Ilkay Gundogan and Joao Cancelo as well as Felix.

Cancelo and Felix may only be loan but Bernardo has still been able to quiz them on life both in and around the city. During a recent interview with Jijantes, Felix revealed: "His sister-in-law is here, [he's asked me] about how things are here, the weather, tax issues... I told him it's all right for him to come."

The Atletico Madrid loanee went on to say: "If I were Deco (Barcelona's sporting director) for a day I would sign Bernardo Silva without a doubt. Have you seen him play? He's even better as a person. He's from Cancelo's generation. Now players last until they are 35-36 years old. [But] I don't think Manchester City will make it easy.

"For €50m (£43m) I would bring him, and for €60-70m (£51m-£60m) he's worth it. He would like to wear the number 10. It's a very important number at the club, you can't give it to just anyone, you have to be careful. It's my favourite number, but I've never worn it."

Guardiola has reportedly already agreed not to stand in Bernardo's way if the ex-Benfica and Monaco ace expresses his desire to leave after seven years at City, and his contract was signed with that already understood.