“I was confused” – Micah Richards admits Chelsea star stunned him with performance against Spurs
BBC and Sky Sports pundit Micah Richards was stunned to see Thiago Silva's commanding performance in Chelsea's 3-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.
Richards was impressed with how easily the Chelsea defender coped with the threat posed by Son Heung-min. Speaking of Silva's performance against Spurs on BBC Radio 5 Live (via HITC), Richards said:
“It was so easy for him. I was confused at times. I was thinking, ‘Well, with Son with his pace, intelligent runs, how is Thiago Silva going to deal with him?
“Son and Spurs pressed really high in the first half, didn’t give Chelsea the opportunity to play like the way they wanted to do," he added. "But every time Thiago Silva came up against Son, he just out-strengthed him, he stepped inside and nicked to him, he dropped off when he needed to.”
Thiago Silva had a complete game against Tottenham. Not only did the Chelsea defender put in an exceptional defensive performance, he also netted the opening goal from a corner.
Chelsea's performance against Tottenham Hotspur was built on solid defense. The Blues nullified both Harry Kane and Son Heung-min. It is worth noting that two of Chelsea's three goals were scored by defenders. One was from Thiago Silva while the other came from Antonio Rudiger.
Your winner, what a performance! ✨ https://t.co/tvwlagN7gc
Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel was pleased with Thiago Silva's performance
Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel has also lauded Thiago Silva's performance against Tottenham Hotspur. Speaking of Silva's performance after the game, Tuchel said:
"He was outstanding. He almost scored twice and he’s so strong. The delivery was good for his goal and we are very happy that he was able to score and open the game for us today but his performance even in the first half was outstanding. It was a fantastic performance."
Tuchel also admitted that he was not happy with his side's performance in the first half. The Chelsea boss claimed the team lacked energy which needed changing.
"I was absolutely not happy with the first 45 minutes," he said. "There were individual performances that were already great like from Kepa and Thiago Silva, and even more players were good, but in general we lacked energy and being more relentless in duels."
As things stand, Chelsea are currently joint top of the Premier League alongside Liverpool. The Blues have picked up 13 points from their opening five matches, scoring 12 and conceding just once.
46': N'Golo Kanté comes on
49': Thiago Silva scores
58': N'Golo Kanté scores
Thomas Tuchel's tactical tweak has worked wonders. Chelsea 2-0 Spurs. https://t.co/unDv04T088
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