Parc des Princes, Paris, France - October 11, 2022. Paris St Germain's Kylian Mbappe in action with Benfica's Antonio Silva.
Manchester City are one of the clubs monitoring Benfica defender Antonio Silva, according to reports.
The Lowdown: Silva profiled
The 18-year-old has worked his way up through the ranks of the Lisbon outfit, and for the first time, has been promoted to the senior squad this season.
The centre-back’s performances in the Primeira Liga, alongside for Portugal’s U21s, have caught the eye of several potential suitors, and the Sky Blues are now allegedly looking to bring him to the Premier League.
The Latest: Man City eyeing Silva
According to French outlet Le10 Sport (via Sport Witness), Man City are ‘keeping tabs’ on Silva, though are set to be rivalled by Paris Saint-Germain, who are ‘beware of the competition’.
It’s stated that Pep Guardiola and Real Madrid ‘are there’, but the teenager has a €100m (£87m) release clause in his contract, which is set to expire in 2027.
The report claims that none of the clubs name-checked would be willing to pay that, though his ‘rating could climb up quickly’ should he be chosen to play at the World Cup later this year.
The Verdict: One for the future
Silva hasn’t yet completed his first full season at the highest level but he’s got bags of potential, so this is a deal that City should look at revisiting next summer when he’s proven himself.
A ‘crazy’ good defender for his age, as dubbed by football talent scout Jacek Kulig, Silva currently averages 2.8 clearances, 2.3 tackles and wins 2.3 aerial duels per league game, alongside recording an impressive 92.7% pass success rate (WhoScored).
The youngster is represented by Portuguese super-agent Jorge Mendes, who also acts for Etihad trio Bernardo Silva, Ruben Dias and Joao Cancelo, so this could give City the advantage in the race for his signature.
Should City sign Silva?
Yes
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