Manchester United are showing a lot of interest in Monaco playmaker Bernardo Silva, but it appears that the Red Devils may have to come up with a £70 million transfer fee in order to have a chance of signing the player – as per the reports from the Sun. The 22-year-old winger has attracted a lot of attention in the last few months after a string of good performances for the French outfit. A highly versatile player capable of playing across the front three, Bernardo Silva is often used as a right-sided attacking midfielder – a position currently occupied by Henrikh Mkhitaryan at Manchester United.

United have finally ended Memphis Depay’s nightmare as the youngster has completed his move to Lyon for around £16 million with the fee potentially rising to up to £21 million. The club may be set for finding a replacement, and Silva has emerged as one of the options. However, it remains to be seen as United will pursue the interest having learned about the extravagant demands of Monaco. Still, the excellent relationship between United and Monaco may actually help negotiations progress further.

A few years ago, United brought Radamel Falcao from the French club for an initially on a loan deal, which in itself was worth around £6 million, while the club had the option to buy the player on a permanent basis for £43 million. Yet, the transfer did not work out as planned and the Radamel Falcao became one of the biggest disappointments. Even then, the relationship built during the transfer of the Colombian striker may work in favour of United especially considering that there is a lot of interest surrounding Silva.

United also brought in Anthony Martial for a fee of £36 million, which could potentially rise to £58 million, from Monaco.

The Sun has also reported that Real Madrid are also one of the club’s showing a lot of interest, as the Spanish outfit are already looking at options to replace Luka Modric in the centre of the midfield.

United have already been linked with several big-money moves. The club are reportedly extremely close to signing Atletico Madrid superstar Antoine Griezmann. Manager Diego Simeone recently admitted that he would be powerless to stop Griezmann from moving to some of the biggest clubs in Europe. The manager becomes a powerless entity because the 25-year-old striker reportedly has a £85.5 million release clause in his contract, which was signed only a few months ago. Griezmann has become one of the biggest transfer targets and the move would reunite him with his international teammate and friend, Paul Pogba.

It remains to be seen if United will be ready to splash out the £70 million on a young midfielder, who is still yet to win any major honour. He is tied down to Monaco until the summer of 2020.