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Gary Neville has heaped praise on Chelsea defender Thiago Silva after the 38-year-old captain performed brilliantly in Brazil's FIFA World Cup win over Switzerland on Monday, November 28.
Brazil struggled without star forward Neymar Junior, who was ruled out of the game with an injury. They eventually sealed the win with a late Casemiro goal.
However, Neville's focus was on Brazil's defense, and how Thiago Silva was vital in ensuring they did not concede a goal.
The Manchester United legend spoke to ITV about the Chelsea centre-back and Brazil's overall performance in the FIFA World Cup clash. He hailed their possession style of play and defensive efforts (via Metro), saying:
"We see Pep Guardiola in the Premier League changing the face of football in the last ten years in that we demand 60%, 70% possession from the best teams.
"Every coach wants that. We demand incredible football players technically gifted players on the pitch but they also have to keep clean sheets. They’re also brilliant defensively. Not just that, they push up the pitch unbelievably."
Gary Neville went on to hail the stalwart centre-back and stated:
"I don’t know how Thiago Silva at his age is still pushing up that pitch. I think back at my career, to get in front of your forward all the time, to try and win it, is one of the hardest that you try and do – he’s still doing that late into his thirties – it’s unbelievable."
Silva was rock solid in the backline, winning one and two ground duels and areal duels, respectively. He also made a key interception that helped Brazil keep a clean sheet for the second game in a row.
People shouldn't underestimate us: Chelsea star Hakim Ziyech speaks after Morocco's FIFA World Cup win over Belgium
Chelsea forward Hakim Ziyech has impressed for Morocco in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, with his best performance coming against Belgium. They stunned Kevin De Bruyne and Co. by beating them 2-0 in their second group game.
Speaking after the match, the Dutch-born star warned others not to underestimate the North African outfit due to their underdog status (via ChelseaFC):
"We’ve achieved so much to be here but we still want to push on. We take things game by game, but of course, you have to think big if you want to achieve something. We know that we are the underdog in most games but people shouldn’t underestimate us because we have a strong squad and we’ve shown that."
Ziyech made one assist against Belgium and also helped in defense, winning 10 ground duels and making three tackles.
Ziyech notably retired from international football, only to rejoin the Morocco national team and got picked for the FIFA World Cup squad in Qatar. The Blues man will be hoping he can take his team beyond the group stages and make a remarkable run to the final of the global competition.
