Manuel Pellegrini was in a buoyant mood after seeing David Silva get through 82 minutes on Tuesday night.

The Spanish playmaker made his first start for Manchester City since early October in the 4-1 Capital One Cup quarter-final win over Hull City at the Etihad Stadium and his presence was well-received by the boss.

Pellegrini felt Silva linked up well with Kevin De Bruyne and was delighted that his squad was beginning to take shape before the hectic Christmas schedule.

"Silva is very important for the team," Pellegrini said.

"He is a quality player. He gives us possession of the ball, which is a style of play that we like to play and he connects well with De Bruyne, and our other technical players.

"We've had so many injures that it's important that our squad is strong."

Silva was replaced by Martin Demichelis when the scoreline was 3-0 as Pellegrini looks ahead to the weekend's Premier League meeting with Stoke City.