Although it has not been officially confirmed yet, Thiago Silva’s return to Fluminense seems like a done deal. Under contract until June, the defender has already announced he will leave Chelsea, and the only thing delaying the Flu announcement is that the European season is still ongoing.
Either way, everything indicates that the 39-year-old footballer will return home, and thus, the Rio-based team will have five players who have participated in a World Cup with the Brazilian national team. Felipe Melo, Marcelo, Douglas Costa, and Renato Augusto are the squad members who have already been World Cup players with the Seleção.
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The last three mentioned players participated alongside the former Milan and PSG player in Russia 2018, while Melo did so in South Africa 2010. Silva took part in four World Cups with the Seleção (2010, 2014, 2018, and 2022), but he couldn’t lift the trophy yet.
What the center-back did achieve was surpassing Dunga and Cafu as the Brazilian captain with the most matches played in the tournament.
Now, we have to wait for Chelsea to complete the remaining matches in the Premier League so that Thiago can pack his bags and write a new chapter in the club of his heart, where he will reunite with Fernando Diniz, who was his teammate at Juventude in 2004.
Fluminense, the defending Libertadores champions after winning it for the first time in 2022, hope that Silva will allow them to compete for the title defense in case they advance to the round of 16, as well as to challenge for the Brasileirão and, if they stay alive, for the Copa do Brasil.
Remembering Zagallo
Sambafoot Series launched a new documentary about the football legend Zagallo. Known as ‘Velho Lobo‘ and as superstitious as it gets, Zagallo helped shape what Brazilian football is nowadays — as a player and as a coach.
Binge the first four episodes available on Sambafoot’s Youtube channel. Stay tuned for upcoming releases as we keep telling this legend’s life story.
