Man City have already missed out on signing £44m star Bernardo Silva tipped to replace him

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Manchester City have missed the boat for a player Bernardo Silva predicted would take his place. Following a season of speculation about his future, it has been confirmed that Silva will leave the club at the end of the season.

Assistant manager Pep Lijnders addressed the 31-year-old's imminent departure while carrying out media duties on behalf of manager Pep Guardiola after Saturday's FA Cup win over Liverpool . The Dutchman, responding to a question about how City might replace him, said: "Every good story comes to an end and I hope he enjoys the last months – because there is only six weeks – and has a good farewell. He deserves all the attention as well."

Silva, who has won six Premier League titles and the Champions League with City, will be tough to replace. One potential successor, Geovany Quenda, was previously identified by Silva, who forecast the teenager would take his spot in the national team one day.

Silva previously said of Quenda, who started out at Benfica before moving to Sporting CP: "He will probably steal my place. At 17, I wasn't even playing for Benfica's youth team."

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But Quenda, now 18, won't be taking his place at City after agreeing to join Chelsea for a fee of around £44m. The deal was agreed in March last year, although he won't join up with the Blues until this summer.

Quenda has enjoyed an excellent final season with Sporting, impressing in the Primeira League and the Champions League. Former Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim, who managed him at Sporting, is also a fan of the player, calling him a "very talented kid".

He said: "Very physically robust, very focused, with his feet firmly on the ground. That's very important for a young player.

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"He got his chance and there was no chance to take it away, no doubt, nothing. I think he's going to be a great player, but let's give it time."

As for Silva, who has made 450 appearances for City since joining from Monaco in 2017, Lijnders acknowledged he will be a hard act to replace. He said: "You never replace a player [like him] with the same kind of player because they don’t exist. Bernardo Silva is unique, the way he controls games, moves, receives, leads and sees the solutions.

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"It will be hard because when he is not playing in a game you see how he is missed. That is one game, imagine the seasons."

Having already won the Carabao Cup this season, Silva will be looking to leave City on a high as they chase down Arsenal in the Premier League, as well as having an FA Cup semi-final against Southampton to look forward to.

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