Could West Ham United offer Thiago Silva, the former Chelsea, AC Milan and Paris Saint-Germain great, a return to the Premier League?
The fact that such a question has been asked over the last couple of days is testament, of course, to the 41-year-old’s remarkable longevity. Not to mention West Ham United’s ongoing defensive concerns.
Heading into Saturday’s clash with title chasing Manchester City, even if Pep Guardiola will be without seven first-team players, the prospect of Max Kilman or Konstantinos Mavropanos going eyeball to eyeball with Erling Haaland is a terrifying one indeed.
Like a certain jumped up YouTuber locking horns with a two-time heavyweight champion.
Just how on earth can West Ham BEAT Man City? 😱
And which Hammers stars can make the difference on Saturday?
So, days after the 113-time Brazil international announced his departure from Fluminense, would the Hammers be willing to take a plunge on a man who made his professional debut three years before Mohamadou Kante was even born?
South American expert Tim Vickery, speaking to talkSPORT, certainly believes that Silva would relish a return to London.
Tim Vickery predicts Thiago Silva could coach at Chelsea amid West Ham United questions
The 2021 Champions League winner has a 17-year-old son – Isago da Silva – making waves in Chelsea’s academy. The chance to watch his offspring follow in his footsteps up close is obviously one that appeals greatly to a man who has accumulated a staggering 30 trophies during spells in France, Italy, England and back home in Brazil.
“I don’t know. He did think he had a chance of getting into Brazil’s World Cup squad, but I think that ship has sailed,” Vickery said when asked about the prospect of Silva joining West Ham.
“I think now you have got to play him in the middle of a back three at the top level. That is what Fluminense did with him at the Club World Cup when the level got a little bit higher, because then he’s got less space to cover.
“It’s been hard for him the last few months because his family is still in London. He’s got a kid who is coming up the Under-17 ranks at Chelsea, so he has been on his own and it has been a bit hard for him.
“He got to the semi-finals of the Brazilian Cup against Vasco da Gama and it went to penalties,” Vickery adds, Silva bidding farewell to Fluminense in rather heart-breaking circumstances.
“He stepped up and just banged his in! But they lost. Part of that was [Vasco’s former Liverpool and Barcelona playmaker] Philippe Coutinho, who hit one of those penalties which was a heart-stopper. If you’re going top corner it’s unstoppable, but there is the risk.
“[Coutinho] just hit off the bar and went in.
“So Thiago Silva bid farewell to Fluminense [in the aftermath]. He wants to move back closer to his family. He’s not going to go to one of the ‘big hitters.'”
Vickery does feel that a return to London is possible, albeit maybe in a coaching capacity.
“I wonder, maybe in a few months, if it is going to be a coaching role at Chelsea, with his kid there and so on. That would probably make sense. But what a great career it has been!”
Can you work out the three MISSING PLAYERS from our 2-1 win over Man City in 2015? 🕵️♂️
A clue: Two of the these mystery men scored the goals for Slaven Bilic's side…
West Ham rule out Thiago Silva deal as Jose Fonte keeps plugging away in Portugal
Teddy Sheringham is the only outfield player over the age of 40 to represent West Ham, who have not beaten Saturday’s opponents Man City since 2015, in the Premier League era.
Hammers News have been told that Thiago Silva will not be emulating Sheringham at the London Stadium, even if there is an argument that a squad shorn of so many experienced campaigners would benefit from his leadership and his extraordinary track record.
“Silva is 41 now!” a source at West Ham says. “There is no other player in the Premier League at that age.
“Great player that he was, it is not a deal we are looking to do.”
It is not entirely unheard of for evergreen centre-halves to defy Father Time. Real Madrid great Pepe continued playing at the very highest level with Porto into his 40s. Ditto Dante, the 42-year-old giant who played nearly 30 games for Nice last season.
Former West Ham defender Jose Fonte is back in Portugal with Rio Ave, too. Now 41, Fonte has started 12 league matches for Rio Ave this term.
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