Thiago Silva
Thiago Emiliano da Silva is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Primeira Liga club Porto. Regarded as one of the best defenders of his generation, he is known for his defensive prowess, discipline, and leadership. He is also one of a few players in football with most official appearances ever.
Silva began his senior club career in 2002 playing as a midfielder for RS Futebol, and transitioned to a defensive position while at Juventude; he then signed with Porto in 2004, at age 19, and moved to Dynamo Moscow on loan, where he was hospitalized with a near fatal bout of tuberculosis. After recovering, he joined Fluminense and won a Copa do Brasil in 2007. In 2009, Silva moved to Italian side AC Milan for a reported fee of €8 million and won the 2010–11 Serie A title with the latter.
In 2012, Silva was the subject of a then-record football deal when he signed for Paris Saint-Germain in a transfer worth up to €42 million, becoming the most expensive defender ever at the time. There, he would become the club's longest serving captain, winning seven Ligue 1 titles, six Coupes de la Ligue, five Coupes de France, and playing in the final of the UEFA Champions League, which served as his last PSG appearance. He currently ranks eighth in all-time appearances for the club. In 2020, the 36-year-old Silva joined Chelsea on a free transfer, winning the Champions League in his first season, and both the UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup in his second.
Silva made his senior international debut for Brazil in 2008 at age 23, and has since received over 110 caps, including appearances in eight major tournaments. He earned a bronze medal at the Summer Olympics in 2008 and a silver in 2012, before serving as captain for Brazil on home soil as they won the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup and finished fourth at the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Silva was also a member of the team that won the Copa América in 2019 and finished runners-up in 2021. He has not been called up to the Brazilian national football team since December 2022, but has not officially announced his retirement.
Club career
Early career
When he was younger, Silva was admitted into a school in the Campo Grande neighborhood of Rio – coincidentally a feeder school for Fluminense. At the age of 14, Silva impressed Fluminense coach Maurinho during a friendly in Xerém. He was given a short trial, where he was given the role of a defensive midfielder. Silva's playing opportunities were few, prompting him to trial for other clubs. In 1999, at the age of 15, Silva auditioned at Madureira, Olaria, and Flamengo; he was rejected at each club, the trial at Flamengo being the most difficult for him as he was not even observed by coaches.After another unsuccessful trial at Botafogo, Silva was taken on by his hometown side Barcelona, a small Brazilian club in the lower divisions. The following year, Silva played at a showcase tournament in São Paulo in the hope of attracting the attention of bigger clubs. It is there where he was spotted by Paulo César Carpegiani, who invited him to join RS Futebol in the south of Brazil. Joining the club in the end of 2001, Silva became a professional in 2002 and competed in the third division of the Campeonato Gaúcho, finishing second and achieving promotion to the state's second division. In a tournament played in Ancona, Italy, Silva was spotted by Bruno Conti, a coach with Roma. Conti wanted him to play for Roma, but Silva did not accept the offer. Strong performances in his last season as a defensive midfielder led to Silva's move to Juventude.
Silva moved to Juventude in 2004, where he played for six months. At 20 years old, Silva transitioned from midfield to defence under the tutelage of Ivo Wortmann. In his only season at Juventude, Silva was regarded as the revelation of the season. He was rated by the sports magazine Placar as the third-best defender in Brazil and was included in the team of the season. Juventude had made a huge leap in league placement during Silva's time at the club – from finishing 18th with 53 points in 2003, to finishing 7th with 70 points in 2004. Silva had caught the eye of many clubs with his outstanding performances, and he was sold to Porto.
Silva was bought by Porto for €2.5 million in 2004, but played only for the reserve team. After a year in Portugal, he joined Dynamo Moscow, where he was diagnosed with tuberculosis and was hospitalised for six months. He is quoted as saying, "Every now and then a doctor would come in and give me an injection, three or four times a day, plus 10-15 pills." His illness became much worse over time and his doctors told him that if he had been hospitalized two weeks later, he could have died. During his recovery, Silva decided to retire from football but was persuaded to reconsider by his mother.
Fluminense
Silva returned to football with the help of his former coach, Ivo Wortmann. In 2006, Wortmann was signed as a coach by Fluminense and requested to bring Silva with him, despite Silva's health issues. On 14 January, Fluminense announced the signing of Silva from Dynamo Moscow. Fluminense struggled in the 2006 Brasileirão, finishing 15th out of 20 teams; however, Silva was described as one of the best players in the season. It is during this time where Silva developed the nickname of "O Monstro" — Portuguese for "The Monster".2007 was a much better year for both Fluminense and for Silva. The club finished in fourth place in the 2007 Brasileirão, conceding only 39 goals in 38 matches, enough for the second-best defence in Brazil. More importantly, Fluminense managed a historic victory in the 2007 Copa do Brasil, winning the prestigious trophy for the first time. Silva played a decisive part in the victory; he started in every match, and scored the opening goal in the quarter-final, as well as the equalising goal in the semi-final. Silva's form through the season led him to be selected into Brazil national team manager Dunga's preliminary squad for the 2007 Copa América. After winning the Copa do Brasil, Silva was recognised by fans as the best defender in Brazil. At the end of the season, he was one of three nominees for the Best Central Defender award, alongside Breno and Fábio Luciano. The voting results were unveiled on 4 December, where Silva finished second, behind Breno.
2008 was a bad year for Fluminense, but Silva's best on an individual level. Having devoted much of their efforts towards the 2008 Copa Libertadores, the club's league form suffered, finishing in 14th place. On 18 January, Silva was rewarded by Fluminense's board of directors for his 100th match in the tricolor: He was awarded a shirt with the number "100" and a plaque in honour of his achievements. Silva became an idol for young Fluminense supporters with his level of performances — the white wristband that Silva would wear during matches became a trend amongst teenagers in Rio de Janeiro who supported the tricolor. In May 2008, four fans painted a flag of Silva to honour what they deemed "the best central defender in Brazil". It was first shown in the Copa Libertadores semi-final against Boca Juniors — Silva scored a crucial equaliser in the same match.
Silva was included in the 2008 Brasileirão Team of the Season and was selected as the Fans' Player of the Season. Silva was widely regarded as one of Fluminense's most important performers in the 2008 Copa Libertadores, reaching the finals only to lose on penalties to LDU Quito. Silva's form for Fluminense earned him a call-up to the Seleção to take part in the 2008 Summer Olympics. Silva was linked with many clubs in 2008, including the likes of Inter Milan, Chelsea and Villarreal, though ultimately he opted to join the Brazilian contingent already at AC Milan. The transfer was confirmed on 12 December. In his final match for Fluminense, Silva was cheered by supporters who were witnessing his last performance at the Maracanã.
AC Milan
After a five-month rundown and a confusing four-hour negotiation period, Silva agreed to a move to Milan for a €10 million fee, with net wages of €2.5 million on a four-year contract. Although Silva could not play competitive matches, he was able to train with the first team. In his first month at Milan, he was taught new defending techniques from Paolo Maldini and manager Carlo Ancelotti. Silva played his first match for the Rossoneri in a friendly match against Hannover 96 on 21 January 2009; he played well, making ten tackles. His performance drew praise from Milan executive Adriano Galliani and teammate Clarence Seedorf. Silva was officially registered as a Milan player for the 2009–10 season.2009–10: Debut season
Silva played his first competitive match of the season against Siena on 22 August 2009. After the match, he was praised for a strong individual performance alongside teammate Alessandro Nesta. Milan legend Paolo Maldini claimed that Silva had the "physical and technical characteristics of a champion", while Nesta said that Silva would "extend my life as a central defender". On 23 September, Silva left training with a muscle strain; he was inactive for the next four matches. In October, Silva followed a poor performance against Roma with two great displays against Real Madrid; Silva also had a wrongly disallowed goal in Milan's away victory.On 8 November, Silva scored a goal – as well as an own-goal – in a 2–1 victory over Lazio. His quick transition to European football was met with a lot of interest from Italian media — the investment of €10 million to acquire Silva was regarded as a good decision; the La Gazzetta dello Sport, the largest daily newspaper in Italy, claimed that Silva's value had doubled at that point. On 25 November, Silva put in a man of the match performance against Marseille to secure passage into the knockout stages of the UEFA Champions League. In a match against Zürich on 8 December, Silva was substituted after 20 minutes with a muscle injury. It was suspected that Silva tore a muscle, and would miss up to two months, though after clinical examinations, the injury was found to be a strain rather than a tear. On 30 December, Silva was pronounced to be fully fit by club doctor Massimo Manara.
On 10 January 2010, Milan defeated Juventus by a score of 3–0; Silva was rated as one of the best performers on the day, and La Gazzetta dello Sport compared the understanding of Silva and Nesta to the legendary duo of Franco Baresi and Alessandro Costacurta. On 15 January, Silva's teammate Alexandre Pato claimed that Silva would become the best defender in the world. In a match against Udinese on 12 February, Silva picked up a muscle injury, leaving him in doubt for Milan's upcoming Champions League match against Manchester United. On 6 March, Silva was selected as man of the match in a 0–0 draw with fellow Scudetto challengers Roma. At the end of the season, Silva was rated as the third-best central defender in the 2009–10 Serie A by La Gazzetta dello Sport.