Man City transfer news: Bernardo Silva makes decision on future after Barcelona snub

Out of contract at Manchester City, Bernardo Silva will leave the Etihad Stadium as a free agent this summer. The Portuguese midfielder is now understood to have settled on his next destination.

Silva set to return to Benfica after City departure confirmed

Earlier this week, Fabrizio Romano reported that a key Manchester City figure had announced his departure at the end of the season. That player is Bernardo Silva. As expected, the Portuguese midfielder — whose contract has expired — will leave as a free agent after nine years wearing the sky blue shirt.

The former Monaco man has informed the Manchester City hierarchy of his decision and is now looking to settle his future before the start of the 2026 World Cup. In this particular saga, Barcelona are understood to have pulled out of a move, despite the Portuguese international having appeared interested in joining the Blaugrana.

Following that rejection from the Catalan club, and according to Football Insider, the 31-year-old has made his decision and chosen Benfica Lisbon as his next club. It would be a homecoming for the Lisbon-born midfielder, who came through the club's academy and established himself there, although he made just three senior appearances for the Eagles before moving to Monaco for £13.5m.

An emotional return that ticks every box

That limited playing time at his boyhood club may well have played a part in his desire to go back. Keith Wyness, former Everton chief executive and now director of a football consultancy advising elite clubs, has weighed in on the situation.

“He has made it fairly clear emotionally he wants to go back to Portugal and Benfica,” he said on Football Insider's Inside Track podcast. “That would be great for them and for him. Obviously, he has deserved it. He has done a great shift. Manchester City fans will thank him, and he deserves to have the last few years where he wants.”

Beyond the personal dimension of returning home and being closer to his family, a move to Benfica would keep Silva in Europe and at a competitive club, at a time when MLS franchises and Saudi Arabian clubs were also showing interest in his profile. Benfica will at minimum compete in the Europa League next season and are still battling for a Champions League place in the final weeks of this campaign.