Real Madrid ready to hijack Barcelona’s pursuit of Portuguese free agent | OneFootball

Florentino Perez’s official return to office means that Real Madrid will speed up matters on the transfer front, and official announcements are expected in the coming days on new signings.

Deals that are already rumoured to be completed will be the first to be announced, but Perez will be determined to concurrently seal more arrivals before the World Cup.

After all, he won the election with a scare and will look to improve the public perception of his presidency by making some big signings. One of the targets linked on that front is Bernardo Silva.

A serious chance

As reported by Cadena SER in a recent update, Real Madrid have now seriously joined the race for the former Manchester City ace and he is no longer a distant target. Notably, Silva remains one of Barcelona’s top targets as well.

Silva is now a serious target. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

Jose Mourinho really wants the player in his team for next season, and it is now a real possibility that he will join Los Blancos.

In fact, the Spanish outlet further go on to relay that Atletico Madrid, who are also in the race, now consider the Merengues to be their biggest rival to sign Bernardo Silva and not Barcelona indicating a major shift in the race.

A tricky operation

Silva appears to be Mourinho’s preferred candidate to improve the stability and creativity in Real Madrid’s midfield. As an experienced player, he can be expected to deliver results with a minimal adaptation period.

Mourinho is keen on working with Silva. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

The hurdle, however, is Barcelona’s interest in the player and his supposed preference to join Hansi Flick’s side.

There is no doubt that Real Madrid’s entry onto the scene will create doubts in his mind over his seemingly firm decision. The onus of convincing him of the move and grabbing him from the Catalans, however, will fall on Perez.