David Silva admits to snubbing MLS opportunity before Manchester City exit in 2020 | OneFootball

Manchester City legend David Silva has revealed he turned down a move to David Beckham-owned MLS side Inter Miami in 2020.

The former Spain international spent 10 seasons in England and made 436 appearances to become one of the first icons of Manchester City following Sheikh Mansour’s takeover of the club in 2008 under the Abu Dhabi United Group era.

Since signing from Valencia for £24 million in 2010, Silva became a club legend and won four Premier League titles amongst a plethora of silverware in blue, notably being honoured and immortalised with a statue outside the Etihad Stadium. 

To this day, the 39-year-old is considered one of the greatest attacking midfielders of his generation – owing to his unparalleled vision, creativity and talent – making him a crucial asset to City’s unprecedented success under their UAE ownership.

As Silva’s minutes dropped under Pep Guardiola in the twilight of his career, Phil Foden was mentored heavily by the Spaniard and succeeded Silva in his attacking midfield role alongside Kevin De Bruyne, who won 19 major trophies in England over a decorated 10-year spell himself and left Manchester City for Napoli this summer.

In a recent appearance on the El Camino de Mario Podcast, Silva has disclosed how he could have moved to Inter Miami – where Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Sergio Busquets all play at present – in 2020, two years after the club was founded.

“I was the first to receive offers from Inter Miami,” Silva said, as relayed by ESPN. 

“I met with (Inter Miami president David) Beckham in Manchester, but I told him I still wanted to compete in Europe. Then I had many other offers: Japan, Qatar, but then I prioritized my personal life and I felt very ready to compete.”

Silva also reflected on his time in England after shrugging off interest from La Liga giants Barcelona, but described his move to Manchester as ‘the best decision’ of his career before winning a total of 14 major trophies at City.

“I had 10 spectacular years there (at City). The people treated me incredibly well, we won everything, the team was improving, and then there’s England – which has something different,” Silva added.

“I don’t know what it is, but they have something different about football. It’s like a religion for them. It took me a couple of months to adapt because between the (FIFA) World Cup and the holidays I didn’t have time to train.”

Silva joined Real Sociedad after leaving City in 2020 and won the Copa del Rey before retiring in 2023 after an ACL injury. He has since shifted his focus onto his family life alongside business, including a winery based in his hometown in Spain, Gran Canaria.