Rio de Janeiro, Feb 4 (IANS): Real Madrid midfielder Lucas Silva hopes his return to former football club Cruzeiro will allow him to fight for a berth in Brazil's national team.

Silva was regarded as one of Brazil's brightest young talents after helping Cruzeiro win back-to-back Brazilian Serie A titles in 2013 and 2014, reports Xinhua.

The 23-year-old joined Real Madrid for 15 million euros ($16.1 million) in January 2015 but managed just eight matches for the Spanish giants before being loaned out to Marseille.

He was due to move to Sporting Lisbon in July but a deal fell through when a routine medical exam detected a heart problem.

"I'm very happy to have returned to Cruzeiro," Silva told a press conference on Friday. "I was very surprised with the reception of the fans in the social media networks.

"I don't see this as a restart but as a continuation. I had a little break due to medical problems and then technical reasons, but now I have a chance to resume my career. I want to pick up where I left off here by winning titles."

Silva said he was fully fit after examinations ruled out any serious heart problems.

He now hopes to earn a berth in Brazil's national team ahead of next year's FIFA World Cup in Russia.

"I had other proposals in Europe and Brazil but when I heard of Cruzeiro's interest, I had no other thought," Silva said of his return to the Belo Horizonte club. "My goal at the moment is to play well and hopefully try to get into the national team."