The Brazilian was one of the many contenders in the backline that could have scooped up the Man of the Match award at Goodison Park
Thiago Silva’s Saturday, August 6 2022 will be remembered for the good and bad parts.
The good being the commanding performance he put in alongside Kalidou Koulibaly as the Blues achieved their first clean sheet of the season on the opening day of the 2022/23 campaign as a late Jorginho penalty in first half injury time was enough for Thomas Tuchel’s side to creep over the line. It was an outing from the Brazilian, who turns 38 next month, that drew heavy praise not only from his manager but from the pundits covering the game. Both Duncan Ferguson and Jamie Redknapp waxed lyrical in their post-match analysis.
“He was fantastic wasn’t he. Great player, great career, 37, 38 this month. Incredible,” the former Everton assistant manager said on Sky Sports’ Saturday Night Football. This simple verdict was followed up by Redknapp’s more elongated one: “Amazing player, he’s just got this ability, it’s like a magnet, he’s so calm. One of the great defenders I think we’ve ever seen. I think he’s won 33 major trophies, the only thing that has evaded him is the Champions League and that might be why he’s not in the bracket of Maldini, Baresi, he is one of the great defenders, a joy to watch. And to be still doing it at this level and looking so calm in what is a fast furious, just so assured.”
For all the good that Chelsea’s number 6 produced on Saturday, the bad certainly had a knock-on affect on the sleep he would have got overnight as he will have looked to recharge his batteries ahead of a busy training week for the Spurs London derby in game week 2.
This is because as @CFCPys first pointed out: “Thiago Silva on Instagram says he was tested for doping after the match and missed the team flight and had to take a 3 hour 30 drive back to London.”
Thiago Silva missed the team flight back after yesterday’s game as he was chosen for doping testing.
Guess that is what happens when you drop a man-of-the-match performance a month shy of your 38th birthday. pic.twitter.com/6eI0AKB8MH
— Adam Newson (@AdamNewson) August 7, 2022
Of course, random doping tests are mandatory in the Premier League and are carried out several times throughout the season, but that doesn’t make it any easier for Silva, who would have wanted to rest after another great display.