"Impresses me every time I see him" - Gary Neville singles out Chelsea star for special praise despite draw against Fulham
Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville recently lavished praise on Chelsea defender Thiago Silva despite the Blues' goalless draw against Fulham on Friday, February 3.
British record signing Enzo Fernandez made his debut for the Blues but could not help his new side claim their second win of 2023 as they were held by local rivals Fulham at Stamford Bridge.
Despite the World Cup-winning Argentine midfielder making a solid impression on his debut, Chelsea could only salvage a 0-0 draw against Marco Silva's side.
Following the game, Gary Neville singled out veteran Blues defender Thiago Silva for praise. The former England right-back claimed that he is always impressed with the former Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) defender, who is a key figure in the dressing room.
Neville further reckoned that Thiago Silva will be absolutely crucial to Chelsea's rebuild thanks to his excellent leadership ability. He told Sky Sports. as quoted by The Metro:
"The big positives for me were the centre-backs. [Jamie Carragher] has mentioned Badiashile but I thought Thiago Silva was sensational. He just impresses me every time I see him. He’s a world-class player, obviously. He could be so important – he is so important – to them."
"He has to somehow hold that dressing room together because there’s going to be some very upset, disappointed and dejected characters," he added. "We’ve just seen a group of players train here out on the pitch after the game at nearly 11 pm at night.
"They are players, trust me, who want to be playing in the first team, they want minutes on the pitch. They don’t want to be training at 11pm at night in an empty stadium, and there’s going to be a lot of that this season for that Chelsea squad."
Thiago Silva has been a key player for the Premier League giants since his move to Stamford Bridge in 2020 on a free transfer after his deal with PSG expired.
The Brazil international has featured 23 times for the Blues this season and a total of 105 times till date. He has been superb at the backline in the Premier League this season, winning 73 percent of the duels he has made. The Brazilian international has also made some key interceptions.
Martin Keown claims Chelsea fans will realize transfer mistake soon
Arsenal legend Martin Keown has claimed that Chelsea fans will soon realize the mistake of letting Jorginho leave in the January transfer window.
The Gunners secured the signature of the European Championship-winning Italy international for a fee of £12 million on transfer deadline day.
Despite many criticizing Arsenal and applauding the Blues for the deal, Keown has instead claimed that the Blues will miss their former vice-captain. He told talkSPORT:
“Deep down, I think the Chelsea fans will realize what he has brought to the club, he passes the ball really well, he sits deep in the midfield. I think there will be players in the Chelsea dressing room who will be a little bit surprised that he has been allowed to leave.”
The Italian became the fourth player to move from Stamford Bridge to the Emirates in the last decade after Petr Cech, David Luiz, and Willian.