Silva: Real Madrid move is a 'dream come true'

Real confirmed they signed Silva on Friday, adding the 21-year-old to their squad just days after securing Norwegian wunderkind Martin Odegaard from Stromsgodset.

In a statement on Cruzeiro's website, Silva declared the Brazilian Serie A club will "always" be home but thanked them for allowing him to take the next massive step in his career by selling him to Real.

"I'm very happy with this moment. It's a unique moment in my life, it's a dream come true," he said.

"I have to say thank to Cruzeiro, the staff, the players, the coaching staff, and especially to the coach. I also have to say thank to the president, who has accepted my personal request and [is] letting me live this dream."

The transfer to Real, reported to be worth €14million, has ended Silva's stint with Cruzeiro, who he joined as a 14-year-old.

But the midfielder, who has yet to represent Brazil at senior international level, insisted he plans to play at the Belo Horizonte-based club again.

"These almost eight years that I have played for Cruzeiro were outstanding. Here I got a lot of achievements," Silva said.

"Cruzeiro has always been and always will be my home. Rather not say goodbye, I prefer to say 'see you soon' and I'm very proud to have honoured this jersey.

"I hope to return here one day to wear this blue robe again."

Silva won back-to-back Serie A titles with Cruzeiro in 2013 and 2014, which was a breakthrough achievement for the club that had only won two championships previously.

"The titles that we won were very important to my growth," he said.

"I've always knew of the ability from this group and we could make history. And we really did."