Bernardo Silva has said Pep Guardiola's drive to keep winning has helped Manchester City open up their huge lead at the top of the Premier League.

City are 16 points clear at the top of the table and can win the title if they triumph in Saturday's clash with Everton and the Manchester derby a week later.

And Silva said Guardiola would continue to push his players, with the game against United sandwiched by Champions League matches against Liverpool.

"What I think is the most impressive thing about [Guardiola] is the way he always wants to win more and more," the 23-year-old said.

"When you win 10 times in a row, he wants to win the 11th and then the 12th. And when you win 20, he wants go for the 21st, so his ambition and his hunger to win things are something impressive."

City set a new Premier League record for the most consecutive wins with 18 successive victories between August and December.

That smashed the previous record of 13, held by Arsenal and Chelsea, with the 14th win being registered at second-placed United.

Silva believes the victory at Old Trafford was a crucial moment of the season, with City now seeming certain to clinch the title.

Bernardo Silva joined Manchester City from Monaco in July 2017. Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images

"I think the win against Manchester United [was the most important] obviously because we were a few points in front of them and after that game, we reached another level," he added.

"It gave us the confidence to keep going, keep winning games."

Silva said he had no regrets about his summer move from Ligue 1 champions Monaco and was getting used to the physicality of the Premier League.

"It's obviously one of the most exciting, if not, the most exciting league in the world," he said. "Wherever you play, the stadiums are always full.

"The league is very competitive, very physical. The referees don't whistle as much as the other league so it's been a great experience so far for me and I'm very happy to be part of the Premier League.

"Everything was great in the beginning. The staff, the players, all the fans. The welcome was fantastic. It helped my adaption to the club and city because it's never easy to change league and to change your club.

"But with this fantastic staff, players and all the fans as well, it was much easier for me."