Paris Saint-Germain are allegedly prepared to hijack Barcelona's proposed move for Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva.
Last year, Citizens manager Pep Guardiola admitted that Silva was looking for a move away from the Etihad Stadium, but he stayed on to enjoy another productive season in sky blue.
Silva - who played the full 90 minutes in the Community Shield defeat to Liverpool last month - recorded 13 goals and seven assists in 49 appearances for City in all tournaments in 2021-22.
The Portugal international featured from the first whistle in 33 Premier League outings despite his desire to leave, and transfer links have unsurprisingly resurfaced this time around.
A move to Barcelona has been strongly mooted for Silva, and Blaugrana president Joan Laporta has refused to rule out a move for the 27-year-old.
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"He is a very good player. I have to respect, though, that he belongs to Manchester City. I have some friends there, like Pep Guardiola, Txiki Begiristain and Khaldoon Al Mubarak. There are a lot of people I know," Laporta explained to CBS Sports.
Claims had been made of Man City offering Barcelona the chance to sign Silva, although such reports are now understood to be wide of the mark.
However, a report from French outlet Foot Mercato states that PSG could now try to hijack a move for the former Monaco man, and the presence of Luis Campos gives the French champions an advantage.
Campos was in the offices at Monaco when Silva arrived at the club from Benfica in the summer of 2014 - initially on loan - and he would supposedly be open to a return to Ligue 1.
However, with Silva still under contract at Man City until the summer of 2025, the Premier League champions are supposedly ready to demand as much as €85m (£71.1m) to sanction a sale.
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The former Monaco man has now registered 48 goals and 50 assists in 250 outings for Man City in all tournaments and starred in the Monaco team of 2016-17 that won the Ligue 1 title.
PSG have already welcomed one Portuguese player to the club this summer in the form of Vitinha, while Nuno Mendes's loan from Sporting Lisbon has been made permanent.
Christophe Galtier's side are also understood to have agreed a £12.5m deal for Lille midfielder Renato Sanches, who would become their fourth summer signing after Vitinha, Hugo Ekitike and Nordi Mukiele.
Meanwhile, Barcelona had allegedly identified Silva as an ideal replacement for Frenkie de Jong, who continues to be linked with a move to the Premier League.
Manchester United are said to have made a breakthrough in negotiations for the Dutchman, but Chelsea are also waiting in the wings and are 'optimistic' about completing a deal.
Ben Knapton
