Silva’s hailed as best Spaniard
DAVID Silva has been voted the best Spanish player in Premier League history in a poll by the BBC.
The City midfielder received 37 per cent of the readers’ vote, with Xabi Alonso coming in second with 14pc and Cesc Fabregas coming in 3rd with 13pc.
Silva has played a key role in the most successful period in the Blues’ history, turning out 349 times for the club and winning seven major trophies since moving to the Etihad from Valencia in 2010.
Last season’s title success was emotional for Silva given the turmoil he was going through in his personal life.
His son was born prematurely in December 2017 and spent the following five months in hospital before being allowed home in May - the same month City got their hands on the Premier League trophy.
And the 32-year-old has now revealed football was the only thing that allowed him to take his mind off the plight of baby Mateo during the second half of the campaign. “It was really tough,” Silva said. “It was so difficult, him being in hospital for so long.
“Besides, he was in Spain, meaning I had to travel a lot and could hardly train.
“I didn’t sleep much, I wasn’t eating well. But luckily the team were doing really well and that helped me a lot. I’ve said it before, the only time I could get it out of my mind was when I was playing. “Then I would start thinking about everything once the match was over. But yes, it was a really good escape.”