Barcelona sporting director explains why Bernardo Silva chose Real Madrid: ‘His views differ from ours’ | OneFootball

Barcelona sporting director Deco has revealed why Bernardo Silva ended up at Real Madrid, despite the Portuguese midfielder being heavily linked with a move to Camp Nou after deciding to leave Manchester City.

Earlier in the summer, Bernardo’s future had looked increasingly likely to involve Barcelona. 

In fact, reports even claimed that talks had progressed significantly and that the midfielder was preparing for a move to Catalonia. 

That momentum eventually disappeared, with Jose Mourinho playing a major role in shifting the situation towards Real Madrid.

For Deco, though, Barcelona’s decision was ultimately dictated by their own recruitment criteria rather than simply losing the player to Madrid.

Why Barcelona walked away from Bernardo Silva

Speaking about their interest, Deco said that Barcelona admired Bernardo but did not consider his position a priority. 

Bernardo Silva was also linked to Barcelona before his Real Madrid move. (Photo by Florencia Tan Jun/Getty Images)

“It wasn’t the position we were looking for. I love him – he’s one of the best in the world in his position and he’s Portuguese,” Deco told SPORT.

The sporting director also suggested that the player’s expectations regarding his role and playing time did not fit the club’s plans.

“He wanted to come to Barça, but it didn’t work out because we have certain criteria. If things go any further, there’s nothing we can do. It was a question of money and playing time.

“We’re not saying whether he’ll play or not. If his views differ from ours, there’s nothing we can do. He wanted to play, but I prefer to rely on our own players.”

Deco responds to Real Madrid and Rodri

Barcelona did lose Bernardo to their biggest domestic rivals, but Deco’s comments about Real Madrid were quite particular. 

Rodri decided to go the other way. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)

He acknowledged the quality available to Jose Mourinho’s team while making clear that Barça’s attention remains on their own campaign.

“They’ve got some brilliant players, a great manager – my manager at Porto. I wish them luck, though not against us. 

“If they manage to build a team, it’ll be tough this season. We’ll just focus on our own game.”

Lastly, Rodri’s decision went the other way after the midfielder was also linked with Real Madrid before choosing Barcelona. When asked about his ‘no’ to Real Madrid, Deco refused to elaborate.

“You’ll have to ask him about that,” he concluded.