Manchester City reportedly value midfielder Bernardo Silva in the region of £65m ahead of a potential exit this summer.
The Portugal international is regarded as one of the most influential players at the Etihad Stadium with 48 goals and 50 assists coming from his 251 appearances in all competitions.
With three years still remaining on the playmaker's contract, the Premier League champions are in no rush to part ways with Silva during the current window.
Nevertheless, speculation persists that the 28-year-old has already informed head coach Pep Guardiola that he would be interested in a switch to Barcelona.
When commenting on reports, Guardiola replied: "At the end, for the club, for the players, for the agents, many reasons. Sometimes you have to sell. For the desire for the players, I need people happy here, we try to do it together. I would love for Bernardo to continue here, a very special player in the locker room.
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"But I don't know what will happen. What happens will happen, if he stays is perfect, if he has to leave it's because football is like this. Players have desire and I'm not a person to stop a person desire in life. Football career is so short. I'm a small part of the club, I have to speak to the club, they decide and I say okay."
According to CBS Sports journalist Ben Jacobs, club officials have set Silva's asking price in the region of £65m.
Whether that is regarded as a realistic valuation by Barcelona remains to be seen given the well-documented financial issues at Camp Nou.
As it stands, club officials are allegedly relying on pay cuts from the likes of Gerard Pique to help them register new players ahead of the start of La Liga.
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Furthermore, the situation with Frenkie de Jong rumbles on with the latest development said to revolve around an ultimatum being handed to the Netherlands international.
If De Jong is prepared to reduce his income, he will remain at Barcelona, but a sale would theoretically free up more leeway to meet Man City's asking price for Silva.
Meanwhile, Silva has hinted that he has already held "honest" discussions with Guardiola and City about his future, and intends to respect whatever decision is taken over the coming weeks.
The former Monaco man has been used in the club's opening two fixtures this campaign, playing the full 90 minutes in the Community Shield against Liverpool and featuring for the final 12 minutes versus West Ham United in the Premier League.
Darren Plant
