‘Can’t move his feet’… Steve Nicol suggests £110k-a-week Chelsea player is finished after Man United loss

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Steve Nicol has suggested that Thiago Silva is no longer the player he once was after Chelsea’s 2-1 defeat to Manchester United last night.

Thiago Silva and the rest of Chelsea‘s defence were poor, allowing Manchester United to have 28 shots, according to BBC Sport.

Steve Nicol has now spoken about the game on ESPN, where he was quite critical of the Brazilian, who earns £110,000-a-week at Stamford Bridge (Spotrac).

This could be Silva’s last season in west London. His contract expires at the end of the season and Chelsea are yet to decide whether they are going to renew it.

Steve Nicol suggests Thiago Silva could be finished

While Nicol believes Silva was a magnificent player, he feels that the central defender can no longer move his feet quickly enough and that is impacting his performances at this level.

Speaking on ESPN FC after Chelsea’s loss to United, the Liverpool legend said: “Thiago Silva has been magnificent as a player, but now the problem for me is he can’t move his feet quick enough. I think his brain’s still working, but when you can’t move your feet, it takes too long.

“And when you’re playing against players like today and Man United, who just couldn’t wait to close the ball down, couldn’t wait to put you under pressure, then you end up getting caught with the ball and you make rash decisions and you give the ball away.”

Is Thiago Silva really finished?

That outing at United was not his best game, but you cannot blame the Brazil international and the rest of Chelsea’s defence entirely for the loss.

The Blues’ defending on the night was not great, but if you concede 28 shots in a single match, then you have to look at the team’s structure. United were running through their midfield and getting past the full-backs so easily before arriving in dangerous situations, which usually ended with a chance.

Of course, you can also point to the mistake that Silva recently made against Newcastle United. But it was the odd one, which every defender is entitled to make once in a while. The problem is Chelsea were punished for it and with Silva now 39 and no longer in his prime, it is easy to criticise him.

However, the former Paris Saint-Germain captain has still had some good moments this season and played in every single one of Chelsea’s Premier League games so far. So honestly, he still has life in him yet.