Manchester City midfielder with 416 appearances has “concrete chances” of summer exit in 2026 | OneFootball

Transfer market insider Fabrizio Romano has detailed the “concrete chances” of Bernardo Silva leaving Manchester City in the summer of 2026.

Bernardo Silva’s future continues to attract attention, with new reports suggesting the midfielder’s time at the Etihad Stadium may finally come to an end when his current contract expires.

The Portugal international has been a crucial part of Pep Guardiola’s success in Manchester, becoming one of the defining players of the Catalan coach’s tenure in England. Since joining from AS Monaco in 2017, Silva has made over 400 appearances for the Premier League giants, collecting every major trophy available, including the UEFA Champions League.

His technical brilliance, tactical intelligence, and versatility across a number of roles have made him indispensable, but his long-held desire for a new challenge has never been far from the surface.

Across recent years, Silva has been persistently linked with moves away. Barcelona have pursued him on multiple occasions, while Paris Saint-Germain also explored his signing alongside Saudi Arabian clubs making big-money offers worth upwards of £500,000 per week.

Now, according to the information of journalist Fabrizio Romano, Bernardo Silva has “concrete chances” to leave Manchester City on a free transfer in 2026 with “no negotiations advanced or active” to extend his contract at the moment.

“It’s a serious possibility,” Romano said of the idea surrounding the Portugal international leaving the Etihad Stadium at the end of the ongoing season. “We have to obviously respect Bernardo, respect Man City because nothing has been agreed, decided or communicated yet.

“And so, we have to keep it open… Let’s respect their timing. But my understanding is that Bernardo Silva has concrete chances to leave Manchester City on a free transfer in 2026.”

The journalist continued, “He always had several possibilities, if you remember in the last two, three years there were opportunities to go to Paris Saint-Germain, to Barcelona always being very interested in Bernardo. Then also from Saudi, Bernardo received important proposals.

“So I’m sure he will have plenty of options in case he decides to leave Manchester City, but that’s a concrete possibility. At the moment, there are no negotiations advanced or active to extend his contract, and so I think there is an opportunity to see Bernardo leaving on a free.”

Should Bernardo Silva decide to move on in 2026, it would mark the end of a remarkable era for both player and club, at a time of gradual transition under Pep Guardiola with key figures such as Kevin De Bruyne and Ederson having left in the last few months.

City’s recruitment team have been busy planning for the long term, with talents like Claudio Echeverri and Rayan Cherki viewed as part of the next generation, and other more immediately ready stars such as Tijjani Reijnders and Gianluigi Donnarumma joining.

A return to Benfica – long considered Silva’s emotional home – has repeatedly surfaced as a potential swan-song. The midfielder himself has admitted to envisioning a future reunion with the Lisbon giants, while Benfica presidential candidates have openly targeted him as a headline signing.

For now, Silva remains focused on leading City through another title challenge and deeper stages of the UEFA Champions League, but with no contract talks currently in motion, all signs point toward an increasingly realistic possibility of an emotional exit next year.