Chelsea defender Thiago Silva has earned big praise from pundit Garth Crooks, who joked that the veteran Brazilian should really have retired a while ago.
Silva is still going strong at the age of 37, scoring for Chelsea against Tottenham in yesterday’s important Premier League clash, and he’s showing no sign of slowing down.
Blues fans will be thrilled with how Silva is getting on in the Premier League, as he perhaps looked a slightly risky signing at first due to his age.
The former Paris Saint-Germain man also didn’t get off to the best start at Stamford Bridge, but has now settled to become a hugely important player for Thomas Tuchel’s side.
“A man of Thiago Silva’s age should have retired years ago. The fact that he’s still playing top-class football at all is a testimony to his fitness and the way he’s looked after himself,” Crooks said in his team of the week column on BBC Sport.
“However, Tottenham defenders should be a little concerned at being out-jumped and out-battled in the penalty area by a player who, in some cases, is more than 10 years their senior.
“Thiago Silva is a great player but when he arrives in the penalty area physical contact should count for something and, until teams like Tottenham and others realise that, Thiago Silva will continue to outmanoeuvre them.”