Interesting article from the Telegraph
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Manchester City v Fulham: learning the true value of precious David Silva
David Silva embodies the productive contradiction of this generation of Spanish footballers: they possess an almost superhuman mastery of space despite taking up so little of it.
While Silva’s eyes may be closer to the turf than most – he will cede the best part of a foot to Fulham’s Brede Hangeland on Sunday afternoon — he intuits the fluid opening and closing of gaps in opposition defences as if he sees the action from above.
Silva’s is not an ostentatious talent. It does not, unlike that of his predecessor Robinho, seek to preen itself with narcissistic step-overs.
Silva’s game is sophisticated, sleekly efficient. And it only works holistically. When he was signed in the summer, it was assumed he would get torn limb from elfin limb in the Premier League but, if anything, it has been his team-mates who needed to adapt, trying to catch up with Silva’s speed of thought and boot.
That muscular orthodoxy is being made to look old-fashioned by the likes of Luka Modric, Jack Wilshere and Silva.
Even though he played a peripheral role, Silva’s involvement with Spain’s World Cup victory meant he came to pre-season training late and with international friendlies in Mexico City in August and Buenos Aires he had little time to hone his fitness.
When City beat Fulham 4-1 in November, there were intimations of what a fresh Silva could do, as he wove together some exhilarating attacks.
Two weeks ago he was the outstanding creative player in the Manchester derby, proving, as he did for Valencia in Spain, that he relishes these kind of confrontations.
But for Wayne Rooney's spectacular winner, it was the kind of performance that could have received more analysis.
“I found it quite tough at the beginning,” he said. “I wasn’t in the right physical shape, not 100 per cent fit for the start of the season.
"That was down to missing the first part of pre-season after my late arrival after the World Cup. There were a couple of friendly internationals involving long journeys which also interrupted things so I didn’t have the time to get fit.
"Since I’ve got to 100 per cent fitness-wise my form has started to come.”
Silva has been working with Ryan Giggs’ yoga instructor to ensure he remains flexible and does not become a victim of City’s heavy fixture schedule. He is hungry to play every game and has dismissed reports, originating in the Spanish press, that he is pining for home.
Ian Brown once said that “Manchester has everything but a beach”; Silva’s hometown has nothing but. He was born and raised in the fishing town of Arguineguín on the south coast of Gran Canaria, the son of a local policeman.
Despite having a population of fewer than 7,000 people, Silva is the second international class player to have come from the town, following the Deportivo la Coruña playmaker Juan Carlos Valerón.
“It’s a paradise,” he said. “The weather, the beaches, the food but especially the weather. You’d find anywhere you could to play football, so we’d play on the beach, on a hard surface, like asphalt and concrete.
"Grass? No way! Players from the island having a good touch, like Valeron.”
Players like Barcelona’s Pedro, from the Canary Island of Tenerife, or even Cristiano Ronaldo, who grew up on Madeira, lend credibility to the idea that playing on hard pitches and beaches refines the technique.
Silva also played a lot of futsal, a version of indoor five-a-side that rewards high levels of technique and improvisation, played on a small pitch and with a smaller, harder ball.
Ambition sharpened the edge of this talent and he left home for Valencia’s academy at only 14. “I went to an ordinary school with local kids from the area,” he said.
“Valencia put us up in halls of residence for people on their staff. Then when I was 16 my parents came over and we lived together. It made me more independent [moving at 14] and added to that at 16 or 17 I was put out on loan to Eibar in the Basque country and then Celta Vigo.”
He points through the window of the Mancunian suite at Eastlands at the drizzle descending on the pitch. “Similar weather to here.” If the idea was to toughen him up, it worked.
Silva is only 5ft 7in but is known in Spain as a prickly competitor. Luis Aragonés, the, ahem, eccentric former Spain coach, has said he had the “biggest cojones” of the squad that won Euro 2008.
At Valencia he flourished. He broke into the side in the 2006-07 season and quickly formed a productive partnership with David Villa. In the following four seasons Villa scored 101 goals, making 45 assists, with Silva scoring 29 from midfield, and creating 48 more.
Valencia were in trouble, however, having built up debts of €500million and with construction stalled on their new Mestalla stadium.
Europe’s big clubs hovered as Valencia struggled to survive, hoping to pick off Silva and Villa on the cheap. Valencia held their nerve, however and, after two seasons of resistance, got value for their assets. Villa joined Barcelona for €4million, while City beat off the competition with a €24million fee for Silva.
He was signed to be the inventive bridge between midfield and attack, and as the season has progressed he has developed an encouraging understanding with Carlos Tévez.
“I was lucky to play with David Villa for four years and we did develop a good partnership but Carlos and I have had only six months,” he said.
“We’re on the right lines and we hope to improve. It was absolutely great that he decided to stay and it can only be a positive thing for us. He’s a top, top player who brings all kinds of things to the team. He’s got a tremendous character and spirit and it was very important that he stayed.”
City are improving by conservative increments, with a spine of players running through the team of the perfect age to play at their peak together. Vincent Kompany (24), Yaya Touré (27), Silva (25), Tévez (27) and Edin Dzeko (24) are all of Champions League quality and Roberto Mancini will be trying to find a system that best blends their abilities.
“It’s not easy, you get a lot of talented individuals but the team’s got to come first,” Silva said. “You’ve got to get a set-up where people are all part of the group which then can allow the individuals to express themselves within that and it’s not easy.
"You can’t really put your finger on a period of time. We’re all trying to do that and gradually we are, we’re getting success in terms of how we play and gel.
“Before the United game we were maybe competing for the title – it’s not that we’re not fighting for it now but it’s been made a little bit more difficult now having lost that game.
“We’re still involved in the Europa League and the FA Cup and we’re not out of the title race yet so while there is hope we’ll be fighting until the end.”
