Manchester City have confirmed the signing of Portuguese playmaker Bernardo Silva, making the Ligue 1 winner their first signing of the summer.

While the official fee has not been confirmed, the figure is said to be around £60 million, which would make the 22-year-old a club record signing. 

Silva passed his medical tests on Friday and will officially join the English Premier League club on July 1, when the transfer window opens. 

The 22-year-old Silva, who began his career at Portuguese giants Benfica before initially moving to Monaco on a season-long loan, will wear the number 22 jersey. 

His loan was made permanent in six months (for a €15.75 million transfer fee), an impressive feat but the French principality side never had a cause to regret the move as Silva scored 22 goals in 85 appearances for them, fast becoming an integral member to their squad.

Along with the likes of Radamel Falcao, Fabinho, Benjamin Mendy, Thomas Lemar and Kylian Mbappe, Silva was instrumental in Monaco winning the French title and reaching the Champions League semi-finals, where they beat Tottenham twice in the group stage before eliminating City and Borussia Dortmund in the knock-out phase en route to the last four.

Silva made 51 appearances last season, scoring 10 goals and assisting a further 10, making him one of Europe’s most sought-after playmakers and his signing signals a statement of intent from the Manchester-based club.

The diminutive midfielder made his senior international debut for Portugal in 2015 in a game against Cape Verde and has made 12 appearances for the senior national side since then.

Visibly thrilled at the move, Silva enthused “It feels great. To be honest I’m now at one of the best teams in the world. To be part of this club and to have this opportunity is great.”

Excited to be working with City manager Pep Guardiola, Silva admitted the Spaniard tactician’s presence was compelling as he added, ”Of course when you have the opportunity of being trained by Pep Guardiola, you don’t say no. As we all know, what he did in Barcelona and Bayern Munich was amazing and we expect also here that he will win titles. It’s great to be working with him and to have this opportunity.”