Fabinho hailed a “fantastic player” by teammate-turned-rival

Manchester City attacker Bernardo Silva has lavished praise on former Monaco team-mate Fabinho after the Brazilian sealed a move to Liverpool.

Fabinho joined the Reds last month for a fee of around of £39million in what was, for many, an unexpected deal.

The Brazilian had established a fine reputation in Ligue 1, renowned for his tough-tackling and impressive passing abilities.

Along with Fabinho, Bernardo Silva, who joined champions Manchester City last summer, was one of the stars of his side’s run to the Champions League semi-finals during the 2016/17 season.

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LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND – MAY 28: Fabinho signs for Liverpool Football Club at Melwood Training Ground on May 28, 2018 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Nick Taylor/Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

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And Silva evidently rates the holding midfielder very highly, admitting that he would have delighted in a reunion at the Etihad.

“The normal choice is [Kylian] Mbappe,” the Portuguese international told L’Equipe when asked which former team-mate he would most like to join City. “In coming years, he can become one of the best in the world. But I can’t decide between him and Fabinho.

“Fabinho still has 10 years ahead of him and I really enjoyed playing with him. He’s very intelligent, he’s a very good person and a fantastic player.”

The 24-year-old will be expected to significantly shore up the side as they look to present a renewed challenge to a dominant City outfit in next season’s Premier League.

With Fabinho set to protect the back four, the Reds are also after a more creative midfielder but suffered a key setback when a virtually-completed deal for Nabil Fekir fell through last week.

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Source: anfieldhq.com