Barcelona could have signed Manchester City star Bernardo Silva in 2015 according to club president Joan Laporta.
The Catalan giants were linked with an offer for the Portuguese schemer, ahead of the 2022/23 campaign, as part of an €80m deal to bring him to the Camp Nou.
Pep Guardiola has previously stated his determination to retain Silva at the Etihad Stadium as the former AS Monaco star has played a key role for the Premier League champions in recent years.
Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain have also been tipped to make a 2023 move for him, as part of an ambitious plan to reunite him with Kylian Mbappe, alongside Barcelona’s ongoing interest.
Despite Barcelona continuing to fight against a financial crisis, in terms of their ability to compete in the transfer market, Laporta was bullish over the club’s links to Silva, claiming they could have snatched him from Monaco in 2015.
“I know him (Silva) personally. In 2015 I had an agreement for him to sign. But, then I did not win the election”, as per report from Diario AS.
Laporta famously lost out to Josep Bartomeu in the 2015 election, and Silva stayed in France, before joining City in 2017.
