Silva first represented Spain in the 2003 FIFA U-17 World Championship in Finland, scoring three goals. In 2006, he became an under-21 international and scored four goals during the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship; this was enough to earn him joint-fourth place in the goal ranking, alongside Italian striker Graziano Pellè.

A product of Valencia’s youth system, Silva made his professional debut in 2004–05, with Segunda División’s Eibar, while on loan from Valencia, playing 35 league games and scoring on five occasions. In the following season, he was again out on loan, this time to Celta de Vigo, where he played 34 matches, scoring four goals. After two late substitute appearances, the first in a 2–0 home win over Málaga on 28 August 2005, Silva finished as an undisputed starter as the Galician side reached the UEFA Cup straight from the second-tier.

Silva returned to Valencia in the summer of 2006, becoming an automatic first-choice despite his young age of 20. In two seasons combined, he only missed six matches and netted 14 goals, his first league goal coming on 5 November 2006 in a 1–1 draw at Espanyol. In August 2008, he extended his contract by five years, amidst interest of several Premier League teams. He won the Copa del Rey 2008, his first title in Spain.

Silva made his senior international debut in the 1–0 friendly home defeat to Romania on 15 November 2006, and continued to receive call-ups to the side after good contributions in his first games. On 22 August 2007, he scored his first two goals for Spain, netting twice in a 3–2 friendly win versus Greece, and was then called up to the squad of 23 for UEFA Euro 2008.

After not appearing in the first three months of 2008–09 due to a chronic ankle ailment, Silva returned to the call-ups in mid-December. On 3 January 2009, he scored twice in a 3–1 home win over Atlético Madrid, still contributing with 19 matches (four goals) as the Che qualified for the Europa League.

In the 2009–10 season, Silva scored a career-best eight goals, as Valencia finished in third position and returned to the UEFA Champions League. On 15 April 2010, he scored a brace against Athletic Bilbao for a 2–0 home win, adding three assists in the 4–4 thriller at Werder Bremen for the Europa League’s round of 16.

On 30 June 2010, Manchester City announced that they had reached an agreement with Valencia over the transfer of Silva and that he would join the club on a four-year deal, prior to the start of the 2010–11 season. On 14 July, the Premier League side completed the signing and Silva was awarded the number 21 shirt, the same number he wore for Valencia and when playing for Spain. Manchester City had previously tried to sign Silva and his Valencia teammate David Villa in 2008, but were put off when Valencia quoted a £135 million combined price tag on both players.

City manager Roberto Mancini mainly deployed Silva as a winger and later in a trequartista role in his first season. Silva made his Premier League debut on 14 August 2010 in a 0–0 draw against Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane. He scored his first goal for the club on 16 September, eight minutes into the Europa League group match against Red Bull Salzburg. On 17 October, he scored his first league goal in a game against Blackpool, netting City’s third goal in a 3–2 away win. In a 3–1 home win in the Europa League against Lech Poznań, he set up two goals for Emmanuel Adebayor. He made another assist slipping through Adam Johnson for Manchester City’s third in a 3–1 away win against West Ham United. Erroneous media reports emerged suggesting Silva could return to Spain and cited homesickness and difficulty to adapt to the English game. His performances, however, impressed City supporters and earned him three consecutive Manchester City Player of the Month awards from October to December 2010.

On 11 August 2010, during an international friendly with Mexico, Silva scored two minutes into second-half injury time, ending the game with a 1–1 draw. In a Euro 2012 qualifier against Liechtenstein on 3 September 2010, Silva scored after 62 minutes, in a 4–0 away win. The following month, in the same competition, he scored through a rare header, as the national team downed Lithuania in Salamanca (3–1).

On 12 February 2011, he was credited for the equalising goal in the 2–1 loss to rivals Manchester United when an Edin Džeko shot deflected off his back and into the net. On 2 March, he scored from 20 yards out in an FA Cup win (3–0) against Aston Villa. Three days later, he scored the only goal in Manchester City’s win against Wigan Athletic. Silva netted the third goal in City’s 5–0 rout of Sunderland on 3 April. His assist to Yaya Touré against Everton at Goodison Park took Silva to 15 assists in all competitions for the season.

In the first Manchester Derby of the season at Old Trafford, Manchester City won 6–1, with Silva proving, yet again, to be instrumental in the Manchester City attack, scoring the fifth goal, setting up Edin Džeko’s second with a chested volley pass through the United defense, and participating in the first two goals with excellent passing to James Milner to assist Mario Balotelli. He was described as having been “two steps ahead of all the United players” in the aftermath of the match. On 25 October 2011, in an interview with a Spanish radio station, Silva revealed that he turned down Barcelona and Real Madrid so he could sign for City, and that he wants to stay at the club for years. He commented, “Madrid and Barcelona are great teams, but I’m happy here and I would like to stay here for many years.” Former City and England defender Earl Barrett said he is almost impossible to stop due to his ability to create space and Andy Cole, who mostly played for Manchester United, has stated that Silva “is a joy to watch.”

In a friendly against Colombia on 9 February 2011, he came off the bench to score the game’s only goal with just four minutes remaining, helping Spain to a hard-fought 1–0 win. He scored twice and provided one assist in Spain’s 3–1 victory against Scotland in their final match of the Euro 2012 qualifiers. The win saw the Spaniards enter the tournament with a perfect qualifying record by winning all their group games. He scored the first goal in Spain’s 2–2 comeback against Costa Rica, a friendly match where he came on as a substitute in the second half with Spain trailing 2–0. He once again scored in a friendly against Venezuela to make the score 2–0 in a match that ended in a 5–0 win. Heading into Euro 2012, he scored in their pre-tournament friendly against China by finishing off a short give and go from Andrés Iniesta in the 84th minute.

Silva scored a goal in City’s 3–2 away win against Queens Park Rangers on 5 November and also scored in City’s 1–0 home win against Arsenal on 18 December. He also contributed by scoring the fourth goal in City’s 4–0 win against West Bromwich Albion on 11 April 2012. Having done well to cut the gap between them and Manchester United to just three points, City went into April’s Manchester Derby knowing that a win would be enough to send them top of the Premier League on goal difference. In a match widely billed as the biggest game in Premier League history, Silva delivered a corner which was headed home by Vincent Kompany for the winner. City triumphed 1–0, and returned to the league summit having been eight points behind their city rivals as recently as the start of that month.

On 13 May 2012, with City heading into the final day of the season needing a win over QPR to secure their first top flight title in 44 years, Silva delivered a cross for Edin Džeko to score the equaliser in the 91st minute of the match. In addition to winning his first Premier League medal with Manchester City, he also finished the season on top of the assists table with 15 assists to his name and was one of four City players who made it in the PFA’s Premier League Team of the Year.

On 17 September 2012, Silva signed a new five-year deal at City, committing himself to the Etihad Stadium until 2017. Just six days after signing his new contract, Silva got off the mark in the 2012–13 Premier League season, registering an assist for Joleon Lescott in a 1–1 draw with Arsenal. He followed this up with another assist the following week, as he played in Aguero to score against Fulham at Craven Cottage. He injured himself playing for Spain in October, which meant he had to miss three games for Manchester City. On 11 November, he provided the crucial assist, a lofted through-ball, to striker Edin Džeko, who converted in the 88th minute to steal a 2–1 victory over Tottenham Hotspur. His first league goal of the season came in a 5–0 thrashing of Aston Villa at home in the very next league match, on 17 November.

On 19 January 2013, Silva scored twice against Fulham at home in a 2–0 win. On 9 March, he scored the fifth and final goal in Manchester City’s 5–0 win against Barnsley at the City of Manchester Stadium in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup, sealing progression to the semi-finals. In the penultimate Premier League game against Reading, Silva made a superb pass to Džeko which took the entire Reading defense out of the game. Džeko scored, sealing a 0–2 win in City’s first match since the sacking of Roberto Mancini. Silva finished the season with four goals and ten assists in 32 league appearances for a City squad that finished runners-up to city rivals Manchester United for the Premier League title.

The 2013–14 Premier League season was a tough one for Silva, as numerous injuries limited him to just 27 league appearances. Nonetheless, he did well to maintain his stellar record of goals and assists for Manchester City. On 19 August 2013, Silva scored Manchester City’s opening goal of the campaign in a 4–0 win against Newcastle United at the City of Manchester Stadium. He followed this up with an assist in the 3–2 defeat at Cardiff, crossing for Alvaro Negredo to score. On 5 October, Silva began one of his most productive spells in the Premier League. Making his first league start since August following a number of injury setbacks, he assisted Sergio Aguero to score against Everton, before scoring once and setting up another in a 3–1 victory over West Ham. Silva then scored again in the 7–0 home win over Norwich on 2 November, but his good form was curtailed by a calf injury, which ruled him out of City’s next six games.

Silva was named in Vicente del Bosque’s 23-man squad list for Spain’s contestation of the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup, held in Brazil. On 20 June 2013, he scored two goals and assisted one for David Villa in Spain’s 10–0 group stage demolition of Tahiti at the Maracanã. Spain would go on to reach the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup Final, where they were soundly beaten 3–0 by hosts Brazil.

On 10 August, Silva played in the 2014 FA Community Shield, a match City lost 3–0 to Arsenal. Two days later, he signed a five-year contract extension with City. Like the previous season, on 17 August, Silva scored Manchester City’s opening goal of the 2014–15 Premier League season in a 2–0 away win against Newcastle United. Silva then scored against West Brom on Boxing Day.

On 21 February 2015, Silva scored a brace against Newcastle United in a 5–0 win. He won the Etihad Player of the Month award for his performances in February. On 4 March, Silva scored in 1–0 win against Leicester City to take him to ten league goals in a season for the first time in his career. Jamie Redknapp described him as a “maestro” for his performances for City, while his teammate Edin Džeko called him “the best player in the Premier League.”

In a 4–0 home league win against Crystal Palace on 16 January 2016, Silva scored one, set-up another two goals and played a key pass in the remaining goal. Silva started the 2016 Football League Cup Final on 28 February, as Manchester City defeated Liverpool 3–1 on penalties, winning his second League Cup with the club. He claimed another brace of assists in a 4–0 home defeat of Aston Villa six days later.

Silva started the 2017–18 season with yet another display of finesse, providing eight Premier League assists in 14 appearances, which was the highest total for any player in Europe’s top five leagues. The 2017–18 season was an especially difficult time for the Spaniard, with his newborn son having been born extremely prematurely. This led to him having to jet back and forth between England and Spain to visit his son and partner in a hospital in Madrid. Despite this, Silva continued to produce excellent performances, and on 30 November 2017, he signed a one-year contract extension with Manchester City keeping him at the club until 2020. On 10 December, Silva scored the winner in a closely fought Manchester Derby at Old Trafford, stabbing the ball past David de Gea from close range.

During December 2017, Silva had been missing games to return to Spain for personal reasons. On 3 January 2018, he said that his new son, Mateo, had been born extremely prematurely and was fighting to stay alive. On 11 May 2018, Mateo was reported as healthy and was allowed to come home.

He also scored in the 2018 EFL Cup Final against Arsenal For his contributions, Silva was nominated for the PFA Player of the Year and named in the PFA Team of the Year for the second time as City won the Premier League. It was the third Premier League title of Silva’s career, and he finished the season with 10 goals and 14 assists across all competitions.

On 15 September 2018, in a 3–0 home win over Fulham, Silva scored his 50th Premier League goal in his 253rd appearance in the competition, also making his 350th appearance for Manchester City in the same match. City and Liverpool went head to head in an absorbing title race, which ended up with City pipping the Reds to the title by a single point.

After being part of Spain’s consecutive unsuccessful campaigns at 2014 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2016, Silva continued his goal scoring record under new boss Julen Lopetegui, scoring 9 times in 12 matches. In May 2018, Silva was named to Spain’s squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. He started all their matches in their World Cup campaign, which eventually ended with a 4–5 penalty shootout defeat to hosts Russia in the Round of 16.

After the 2018 World Cup, Silva announced his retirement from international football. He ended his international career with 125 caps for Spain, having scored 35 goals. Following his retirement, Silva drew plaudits from many of his former teammates, being described as “one of the best ever” and “one of the most talented players Spain has ever produced, without a shadow of a doubt” by midfield partners Andres Iniesta and Xavi Hernandez. Vicente del Bosque, who led Spain to the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012 titles, even went as far as to declare Silva “Spain’s Lionel Messi”.

Following the departure of Vincent Kompany in 2019, Silva inherited the club captaincy. On 26 June 2019, Silva announced that he would leave Manchester City at the end of the 2019–20 season. The campaign began with City facing Liverpool in the Community Shield at Wembley- City won on penalties following a 1-1 draw, with Silva producing a brilliant pass to assist Raheem Sterling for City’s goal. On 8 July, he provided two assists, the second of which was his 10th of the season, and scored a free kick as City beat Newcastle United 5–0. With the free kick goal, he reached 150 Premier League goals and assists, which only a few midfielders had done before.

On 1 March 2020, City took on Aston Villa in the League Cup final, their third such final in as many years and fifth in seven seasons. The Blues won 2-1, with goals from Sergio Aguero and Rodri, and lifted the trophy for the third time in a row. It was Silva’s only trophy as captain of Manchester City, and his fifth League Cup title overall, making him the most decorated player in the competition’s 60-year history.

On 26 July 2020, Silva played his final Premier League game for Manchester City, a 5–0 win over Norwich City. He was substituted late on in the match, to applause from all present. Just under a month later, he played his last game in a City shirt, in a disappointing 3–1 defeat to Olympique Lyon in the Champions League quarter-finals, coming on as a late substitute. At the age of 34, Silva ended the campaign with a respectable return of six goals and 11 assists in all competitions, enough to earn himself a third appearance in the PFA Team of the Year despite City’s underwhelming season.

On 17 August 2020, Spanish club Real Sociedad announced the signing of Silva on a free transfer, despite reports of a move to Italian side Lazio.

Silva made his debut for the club in a 0–0 home draw against Real Madrid, coming on as a substitute in the second half. On 1 November 2020, he scored his first goal for Real Sociedad in a 4–1 away win against Celta Vigo.