Pat Nevin has said that Chelsea defender Thiago Silva is finally starting to get the kind of recognition he deserves.
Silva, 37, is like a fine wine that continues to get better with age.
The £105,000-a-week Brazilian centre-half starred at the weekend in Chelsea’s 3-0 win against Leicester City, nullifying any kind of attacking threat from the likes of Jamie Vardy.
Rio Ferdinand reckons Chelsea’s back three system is a massive advantage to Silva. The veteran centre-half takes up a spot in the heart of the defence whenever he’s on the pitch, making 13 appearances across all competitions already this season.
Nevin has praised Silva after he was awarded man of the match against Leicester on BT Sport’s coverage:
“Once again there were a bunch of candidates wearing yellow, not slipping on it, for the man of the match award. I noticed later on TV that they gave it to Thiago Silva which delighted me and doubtless many of you as well,” Nevin wrote.
“Finally, people are beginning to realise that our Brazilian Rolls Royce of a centre back is effortlessly and classily cruising away from just about anyone he is up against week after week.”
Silva still in best Chelsea team
Blues manager Thomas Tuchel has the luxury of rotating in defence, as he’s got five superb centre-back options in his squad.
However, Silva has to be considered in the best XI right now.
If Chelsea were to play a cup final tomorrow, Silva would surely be one of the first names on the team sheet.
He’s found no difficulty coping with the Premier League at his age, and Tuchel deserves immense credit for his work with him in 2021.
Antonio Rudiger, Cesar Azpilicueta, Andreas Christensen and Trevor Chalobah are the other centre-backs in Chelsea’s dressing room that will no doubt love having a mentor to lean on like Silva.
There is a superb balance between experience and youth in the Blues squad.
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