Thiago Silva has been a revelation for Chelsea.
The veteran centre-back was picked up for free in the summer. He has churned up some impressive performances for the Blues, keeping 7 clean sheets in 10 appearances.
His leadership at the back is also invaluable and he seems to know his position well from early on allowing him to cover for his lack of pace at the back The 36 year old has been praised by pundits with former Chelsea player Joe Cole hailing him as the second best defender in the world after Virgil Van Dijk.
Cole told BT Sport: “He has been one of the great defenders of our generation, but at 36 you worry.
“Traditionally players at that age coming into the Premier League, it is very difficult. The Premier League is a different beast now.
“He was not fit at the start of the season and Frank did not want to throw him in.
“He needed time to get into it and now he looks like a Rolls-Royce and one of the best centre-halves in the league.
“I do not think they make centre-halves like him anymore. Apart from Van Dijk, I would say he is the best in the league. He has brought so much quality, on the pitch and off the pitch.
“For [Antonio] Rudiger, [Kurt] Zouma and [Andreas] Christensen next to him, he is a standard bearer.
“That is the level you want to get at if you want to class yourself as a world-class centre-half.”
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