Frank Lampard says he "heard a rumour" about David Silva before joining Manchester City and it turned out to be true after he went on a night out with the Spaniard.
Many were surprised when Lampard decided to join defending Premier League champions City ahead of the 2014/15 campaign after 13 trophy-laden years at rivals Chelsea.
In fact, almost a decade on from that transfer, the former midfielder has admitted it was a "tough decision" to sign for the Citizens due to his affiliation with the West London club.
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That being said, the chance to continue his career at the highest level was too good to turn down.
“It was tough because my career had been so long at Chelsea," he told Manchester City's official website in a lengthy interview.
“If I’m honest, I’d never envisaged playing anywhere else in the Premier League but the pull of Manchester City was huge."
Lampard added: “I was proud that City, who were champions at the time, wanted to take me on board at 36-years-old.
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“When I spoke to Manuel at the time in New York, he felt I could help the squad because he thought they needed some experience in there.
“I took the leap because it was a top club at the time and was going to be, I thought, another great experience for me and a great opportunity to stay in the Premier League, which is the greatest in the world.
“There were a lot of pluses. But I did toy with it a bit because of my association with Chelsea."
As well as a number of other subjects, the 45-year-old also spoke about Sergio Aguero. Vincent Kompany and David Silva, and how it was an "honour" to play alongside them.
After calling Aguero one of the best strikers he ever played with, Lampard described Kompany as a "great leader" before opening up on Silva's incredible talent and personality.
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“David was quiet around the place but what an incredible player," he said.
"I noticed it first in training and he was of the highest, highest level. He was right up there. But his humility as a lad made him even more special to me because he had zero ego.
“He just came in, did his job and did it a high, high level. So he was a true pleasure to play with. I always reference David because of his talent but also his personality. He was incredible."
Lampard would later speak about the side of Silva that surprised him.
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“He liked a night out with the lads too. I’d heard a rumour about this before I joined. But I thought ‘no chance!’ We had a couple of nights where he was there on the beers. He’d be there until the end of the night.
"He was very friendly, very nice, enjoying himself, a lovely guy."
Featured Image Credit: Getty ImagesTopics: Manchester City, Premier League, Frank Lampard, Chelsea, England