Pat Nevin has suggested that he’s worried about the fitness of Chelsea’s Thiago Silva ahead of the club’s return to action.
The Blues will play in exactly a week’s time when they host Bournemouth on 27 December in the Premier League, which already feels like a big game because they’re eight points adrift of top four.
Silva, who’s now 38, hasn’t had much time off during the World Cup break.
The £110,000-a-week defender captained Brazil out in Qatar at the World Cup, reaching the quarter-finals before defeat to Croatia on penalties.
His fitness and conditioning is immense for someone in his late-thirties, but fans will know he can’t go on forever.
Thiago Silva fitness
Nevin has highlighted Silva’s workload as a potential red flag:
“Maybe the bigger concern should be for Thiago Silva. With over 1000, he has more league minutes than any other Chelsea player this season. He played most of the games for most of the time for Brazil before Kova (Mateo Kovacic) and co. knocked them out in the quarter-finals after another gruelling game that went to extra time and penalties,” Nevin wrote on the club’s official website.
In our view, there’s every right to be a bit cautious with the veteran centre-back in the immediate fixtures post-World Cup.
There’s no doubt he’s still a vital player in Graham Potter’s squad. The Blues manager will need to be careful with him, though.
Silva played 17 Chelsea games across all competitions this season before the winter break, starting 15 of them.
Paul Merson claims the Brazilian was “outstanding” throughout the World Cup with his defensive masterclasses, something everyone has become so used to seeing at the highest level.
However, Chelsea need to make sure they don’t burn him out and keep him on ice for the biggest games.
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