Real Madrid target Man City star Bernardo Silva

Bengaluru, January 21: Spanish giants Real Madrid are desperate to secure the signing of Manchester City star Bernardo Silva in a £70million summer raid.

The Portuguese international has caught the eye with some stunning displays for the Premier League champions so far this season. His performance for the Cityzens in their 2-0 win over Liverpool, clocking up a season's-best 13.7 kilometres in a tireless performance, has raised his stocks even higher and Real Madrid have now registered their interest.

The Spanish giants are keen to bolster their squad after a disappointing season which has seen them slip to third in La Liga, seven points behind leaders Barcelona having played a game more.

They did however beat Sevilla 2-0 to leapfrog the club into the top three thanks to second-half goals from Casemiro and Luka Modric.

Silva has become increasingly influential since a £43.5million move from Monaco in 2017, and is seen by boss Pep Guardiola as the natural successor to 33-year-old David Silva as the club's creative fulcrum.

After 53 games and nine goals in his debut campaign at the Etihad, the 33-cap Portuguese international has already struck seven times in 26 games this year.

Over the years, it has been seen that it is quite a tough job to get players from Manchester City and since the arrival of Pep Guardiola, the task has surely become even more monumental and Real Madrid should know that.

Manchester City are themselves looking for reinforcements, but may miss out on Dutch starlet Frenkie De Jong to PSG.