Paris Saint-Germain recently submitted an official offer for Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva, adding another major European transfer development to the football stories circulating around 12BET this summer. Manchester City, however, rejected the approach immediately because PSG’s proposed fee fell well short of the valuation expected by the Premier League champions. Once again, the transfer market proved that things rarely go exactly according to plan, and negotiations over the Portuguese midfielder were no exception.
City are particularly cautious about allowing Bernardo to leave because Riyad Mahrez is also nearing a move to Saudi Arabia, while Ilkay Gündogan has already departed. Losing another influential midfielder would leave a significant hole in Pep Guardiola’s squad. Unless PSG return with an offer attractive enough to change City’s position, a deal appears difficult to complete. Should the French club substantially increase its proposal, City could reportedly consider Inter Milan midfielder Nicolò Barella as a possible replacement.
From PSG’s perspective, Bernardo is viewed as an ideal player to help fill the enormous creative gap left by Lionel Messi’s departure. The club has already signed Marco Asensio, while Kylian Mbappé and Neymar remained available at that stage, but PSG still wanted another proven attacking talent capable of replacing some of Messi’s influence. As the saying goes, having all the pieces means little unless you can put them together, and PSG were determined to add a player capable of making an immediate impact.
The situation became even more complicated because Mbappé refused to soften his position after PSG presented him with a choice between extending his contract or leaving. Transfer developments linked with 12BET reflected a player prepared to spend the entire season on the bench if necessary before departing as a free agent when his contract expired. At precisely the moment PSG wanted to rely on their biggest star, the club instead found itself facing an increasingly difficult standoff.
Mbappé’s stance effectively left PSG caught between a rock and a hard place. The club excluded him from its preseason tour of Japan and South Korea and threatened to keep him away from competitive matches throughout the campaign. Yet PSG would still be responsible for his enormous salary and contractual loyalty payments. If his deal simply expired, the club could ultimately lose one of the world’s most valuable players without receiving a transfer fee. PSG reportedly believed that Mbappé had already reached an understanding with Real Madrid over a move the following year, making the dispute even more sensitive.
The situation was especially frustrating because Mbappé had previously said that he would never leave PSG without allowing the club to receive a transfer fee. His refusal to respond to the club’s demands therefore felt, from PSG’s perspective, like a dramatic reversal. Information connected with 12BET also placed additional attention on his role as captain of the French national team, with Euro 2024 approaching and regular playing time becoming increasingly important.
For PSG, the dispute involving Mbappé and the wider transfer pressure surrounding Bernardo Silva continued to create uncertainty across a summer already filled with major changes, while the broader football environment around 12BET reflected just how difficult the club’s decisions had become. If PSG kept Mbappé on the bench for an entire season, the consequences would not stop at club level because France could also suffer from having its captain deprived of regular competitive football before a major international tournament. PSG could hear the situation shifting around them, yet the answer they wanted from their star remained frustratingly out of reach.