Jose Mourinho is smitten with Bernardo Silva. The legendary Portuguese manager is the key reason why Real Madrid signed the Manchester City star despite Florentino Perez outright rejecting his reps whenever he was offered to them, which even happened years ago when Silva really was in his prime as one of the top players in world football.
Even though Silva has clearly declined and looked close to finished at the highest level of football last season for the Citizens, Mourinho demanded his signature, and after the friendly match against Ferencvaros, it looks like Mou is intent on giving Silva a key role with a lot of potential starts in the 2026/27 La Liga season.
Silva's stock is rising in world football again, and it sounds like Madridistas can expect him to be part of a starting midfield trio alongside Jude Bellingham and Arda Guler. Jude is the best midfielder in the world right now, while many feel Guler can reach that level of quality with an emphasis on his playmaking; he is already drawing comparisons to Mesut Ozil under Mourinho before even taking the pitch for the former Inter Milan treble winner.
Fede Valverde has the most to lose now
All of this means, though, that there will be a loser on the Real Madrid roster, and all signs point to Fede Valverde, coming off a difficult season as a captain and an even worse World Cup for Uruguay, being the one to suffer the most.
Bernardo Silva can take up his job on the right side of the midfield in that box to box role in a 4-3-3, but he can also be a better double pivot and pass, maintain possession, and read the game better than Valverde, whose superior athleticism is no longer enough to shroud other areas of his game that have not advanced. And plus, Silva works just as hard as he does, even though he is a good bit slower.
Of course, not every Madridista is all aboard Mourinho's rather fishy Bernardo Silva train, especially those who watched him struggle in the Premier League through most of the 2025/26 campaign. But there is also a pervasive sense of trust around Mourinho's judgment at the White House, which is, above all else, displayed by president Florentino Perez, who did not question Mou wanting Silva for free this summer.
Fede Valverde is now in a spot where his starting job is up in the air, and this could be the first year we really see Real Madrid divest from their former Champions League hero if he continues to show more petulance than quality in the middle of the park.
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