With his floppy haircut and cool, unruffled persona,Silva is product of Arguineguin, a fishing village on Gran Canaria and remains loyal to his Spanish roots, admitting only to being taken by one English delicacy.
"Believe it or not, I love apple porridge," Silva admits. "I'd never eaten it before I came to England, so I'd say that's my favourite thing.
"But what I enjoy about Manchester the most is that I can travel around, go to the city centre and eat out and the people are very respectful."
Silva can no longer pass under the radar quite so easily, however. When he first arrived at City, Alan Shearer's repeated mistake in describing the City playmaker as David Villa, rather than Silva, on Match of the Day was probably regarded as a positive by the publicity-shy Spaniard, who admits to allowing his mother to look after his World Cup winners' medal.
Yet a series of match-winning displays, sparked by a virtuoso performance at Blackpool last October, saw Silva dethrone Carlos Tevez as the darling of Eastlands long before the Argentine's agitation for a move soured his relationship with the fans. Shackling Silva will be the priority for United. The winger's early miss in last season's league clash at Old Trafford, ultimately won by Wayne Rooney's overhead kick, proved pivotal but, with the likes of Samir Nasri and Sergio Aguero now on hand to supplement Silva's ethereal ability, his value to City has become ever greater.
Before his move to east Manchester he had long been on United's radar, but they failed to follow up their interest, instead recruiting Javier Hernandez, Chris Smalling and Portuguese winger Bebe. City's gain has definitely been United's loss.
"City were the club that showed the most interest for me." Silva said. "They stuck their neck out and showed the more serious interest, that's why I went for it."
Two months into the season, Silva is arguably the early leader in the race to become Footballer of the Year. Unfathomably, he remains a fringe player in the eyes of Spain coach Vicente del Bosque, only performing when the likes of Xavi or Andres Iniesta are rested, and it has led to Silva harbouring a fear of being out of sight and out of mind in England.
"Whether my situation would have been different if I played for Barcelona or Real Madrid, I don't know." he said. "I sometimes get the feeling that I would be treated differently if I had joined one of those two teams."
Silva has the platform to claim the limelight tomorrow, however. His talent is too bright for him to be denied centre stage for much longer.
