Man City to honour David Silva at the Etihad: “he deserves a statue”
Manchester City will install a statue to their departing midfielder, with a similar tribute to another club legend already in development.
Spanish midfielder David Silva will be honoured with a statue outside the club’s Etihad Stadium after making 436 appearances in his ten years with Manchester City. Silva, who took over club captaincy after the departure of Vincent Kompany in 2019, recorded 77 goals and 93 assists and is widely regarded as one of the club’s greatest ever players.
Silva statue for Man City
The news was announced in a video posted on City’s Twitter account in which Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak said that “if there is one person that needs to have their special place in front of the Etihad, it is David Silva.”
"He has put a stamp on the team, on this club, its history and even the Premier League as a whole. In doing so he has been instrumental to the beautiful football philosophy you see today. He was the start of it.”
Silva’s decade at the club came to an abrupt ending on Saturday as his side were eliminated from the Champions League but City are eager to ensure that the playmaker is celebrated on his departure. As well as the statue Al Mubarak announced plans to name a pitch at City’s Etihad training complex after Silva to inspire academy players to emulate one of the club’s greats.
Plans are also in place to erect a statue for Kompany and Al Mubarak said that it is already being developed. The Belgian announced his retirement from football today after a season with boyhood club Anderlecht, but Silva has said that he intends to continue, with Italian side Lazio believed to be interested in securing his services.
Silva looks likely to become a rare example of a footballer who has a statue of himself outside a stadium while still an active player. Thierry Henry managed the same feat in 2011 while playing for the New York Red Bulls when his statue was unveiled outside of Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium. The Frenchman even went on to score at the site of his statue during his brief return to the club in 2012.