Rui Faria Reveals Manchester United's Missed Chance with Bernardo Silva

Rui Faria reveals the Manchester United transfer that never was: Bernardo Silva in 2017

Manchester United’s summer is already full of upheaval. Michael Carrick is preparing for his first full season in charge, Ineos are reshaping the club’s direction, and the Premier League landscape is shifting with major departures at rivals, including Pep Guardiola and Bernardo Silva leaving Manchester City, and uncertainty over Rodri’s future.

Amid all that change, a revelation from a familiar figure offers a sharp reminder of what might have been at Old Trafford.

The one that got away

Rui Faria, Jose Mourinho’s long-time assistant and one of the few people who truly understand the Portuguese coach’s methods, has revealed that he urged United to sign Bernardo Silva back in 2017.

Faria followed Mourinho to Manchester in 2016, extending a partnership that had stretched across 17 years and six clubs, including two spells at Chelsea. They arrived at Old Trafford with a clear idea of how they wanted to rebuild. Bernardo Silva, then a 22-year-old rising star, was high on Faria’s list.

“Bernardo Silva is a fantastic player. I remember recommending him to Manchester United in 2017, when he was 22,” Faria told AS. “We tried, but it wasn’t possible, and he ended up at their city rivals. If he’s fit, he can be a game-changer for Real Madrid. He’s a player with tremendous technical ability, a great understanding of the game, and exceptional intelligence.”

United hesitated. City did not. The rest of the story has played out in full view.

Silva crossed the city divide, joined Guardiola’s machine and became one of its most intelligent cogs. Six Premier League titles later, plus a Champions League crown in 2023, he left the Etihad this summer as one of the defining players of City’s era.

Now he has walked into another giant of the European game, signing for Real Madrid as a free agent.

Mourinho finally gets his man – in Madrid

Faria’s interview centred on Mourinho’s return to Real Madrid and his belief that the coach should never have left after his first spell between 2010 and 2013. This time, though, Mourinho arrives at the Bernabeu with a player he once wanted at Old Trafford but could never secure.

Mourinho and Bernardo Silva will now try to wrestle back the La Liga title together. It is a partnership delayed by seven years and rerouted through Manchester, but one that still carries a sense of inevitability. The coach who thrives on control and structure now has one of Europe’s most tactically intelligent playmakers at his disposal.

For United supporters, it is another reminder of a sliding-doors moment. In 2017, Bernardo Silva could have been the creative heartbeat at Old Trafford. Instead, he became a symbol of City’s dominance and now strengthens Real Madrid’s already formidable squad.

United’s new era, old regrets

As Carrick plots how to close the gap on Arsenal and a Guardiola-less City after finishing third last season, the club faces familiar questions about recruitment. Ineos are now the decision-makers. The margin for error is shrinking.

Supporters are already debating which signings could tilt the title race. Youri Tielemans has been tipped by some as the “signing of the summer” and a possible catalyst for a genuine title push. The conversation around what United need, and who they missed, is as loud as ever.

Faria’s story adds weight to that debate. When a coach with his experience and proximity to Mourinho identifies a player so clearly, and that player goes on to dominate for a rival, it underlines how costly a misstep in the market can be.

Faria’s journey after Old Trafford

Faria himself walked away from United in 2018. After exactly two years at the club, he resigned at the end of the 2017/18 season to spend more time with his family, bringing an end to a 17-year professional partnership with Mourinho.

He resurfaced in 2019 as manager of Al-Duhail in Saudi Arabia for a brief spell, stepping into the front line after years in the shadows as an assistant. Now he works as a technical observer for UEFA, filing reports on Champions League matches and analysing the very stage on which Bernardo Silva has so often shone.

From that vantage point, Faria has watched United’s nearly-signing grow into a serial winner, a player he once believed could transform Old Trafford.

He did transform a club in Manchester. Just not the one that called him first.