As Thiago Silva prepares to bid farewell to Stamford Bridge, he has offered a candid critique of his Chelsea colleagues, highlighting the issue of ‘egos’ within the team.
The esteemed Brazilian defender, who is set to depart from Chelsea when the season concludes, has been a pivotal figure for the club, making 154 appearances since his transfer from Paris Saint-Germain in 2020.
- ‘They won’t win it’ – Cristiano Ronaldo predicts Premier League title winners
- Lionel Messi names Premier League star who delivered the best goalkeeping display he’s ever seen
- Klopp reveals the Premier League player he ‘doesn’t like’ after title-race incident
His contributions were instrumental in Chelsea’s Champions League triumph just a year into his tenure.
Silva’s next chapter will see him return to Brazil, having secured a two-year contract with Fluminense following his time at Chelsea.
In a thought-provoking message to his Chelsea peers before their ultimate Premier League match against Bournemouth, Silva expressed that the team’s ongoing challenges are unlikely to subside unless there is a collective effort to set aside personal pride.
He also remarked that if the Chelsea squad had performed throughout the season as they have, they would likely face severe criticism, akin to having stones cast at them, in his home country of Brazil.
‘Thiago knows what it means to wear a Chelsea shirt, you know,’ he told Sky Sports. ‘And if I have a message to send to the boys that are here today, I hope they understand that everything they did to get to Chelsea has to be worth it.
‘Because the season we’re having is not worthy of Chelsea. It’s not. And I think they have to do more next year, they need to do more.
‘If you look at the games, the fans never left the team, never. We were in ninth place, eighth, right? And the fans were always there.
‘They booed us off a little at the end of the match, but they’re always there in the stands, always with 40,000, 45,000. If we were somewhere else, they could throw rocks at us – we know that happens in our country.
‘So these boys need to be aware that Chelsea has to fight for the top positions. If we take a little of our ego and put it in favour of the team, I think it will work. If we don’t do that, the situation will hardly change unfortunately.’
Throughout the majority of the 2023-24 season, Chelsea found themselves in a mid-table stance, but a recent wave of victories has propelled them to the sixth spot.
Under the guidance of Mauricio Pochettino, the team has strung together four consecutive wins, positioning themselves on the brink of European qualification—provided they can secure at least a draw against Bournemouth in their season finale.
Even with this late-season revival, the overall sentiment remains one of underachievement for a club of Chelsea’s stature, especially considering the hefty investment exceeding £1 billion in new talent under the ownership of Todd Boehly.
Assessing Chelsea’s season, Pochettino said at his last pre-match press conference: ‘If you ask me if I’m happy with the way the team has evolved, yes yes [I am so happy].
‘In the past 26-27 games, we are in the top four – but it’s still not enough. We want to evolve and improve. But I am so proud [with all the circumstances].’
