David Silva Profile

Beautiful, graceful Spanish midfielder, whose intelligence, movement, passing and skill meant that he could be deployed in almost any attacking role. Michael Laudrup was David Silva's idol growing up, and you can see the similarities in his style, one of those rare breed of footballers, just like the great Dane, who almost seemed to glide effortlessly around the pitch, finding spaces wherever he roamed from which to inflict damage on the opposition. Born on the Canary Islands, Silva played for a local team in Gran Canaria before being scouted by Valencia and moving to the mainland to join their youth ranks. Silva would spend ten years with Los Che before making the move to the Premier League in 2010, joint Roberto Mancini's big-spending Man City as they looked to win their first league title since 1968. It would prove to be one of City's greatest ever transfers, Silva more than repaying the Â£24m fee that City had paid for him with ten years of incredible service that would see him become instrumental in City's four victorious Premier League campaigns. When he finally left in 2020 to return to Spain he had become a huge fan favourite, adored by City fans and one of the few players who seemed to have love and respect across the board from fans of other Premier League clubs. At international level he would win a World Cup in 2010 and European Championships in 2008 and 2012.