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4. Thiago Silva
Thiago Silva's decade started with a goal in the very first match of the 2010-11 season with AC Milan, a sign of things to come you could say. He was instrumental in AC Milan lifting the Scudetto that year given that their city rivals were fresh off their treble-winning season and the domination Juventus has had since then.
His performances for Milan saw Franco Baresi call him "his natural heir" at the club. The Brazilian was not only great in his position, but was also versatile enough to fill in at full-back as well as a defensive midfielder when needed.
Silva became the world's most expensive defender at the time of his €42 million transfer to Paris Saint-Germain and trophies have followed him there as well. 20 trophies with the Parisians as well as the Confederation Cup and Copa America with the national team prove he is one of the best in his position and he certainly deserves the plaudits he receives. He started the decade by winning the Italian League title and ended it with the Copa America, a testament to his longevity at the top of the game.
3. Giorgio Chiellini
The quintessential Italian defender, if there is someone as hard as nails in football it is this man. He may not be the silkiest ball-playing defender, but when it came to keeping the ball out of the net, there are few better than him. Signed by Juventus back in 2005 for a measly €6.5 million, he has gone on to become a stalwart of the game.
Along with Leonardo Bonucci and Andrea Barzagli, he brought old fashioned Italian defending back into practice and the trio broke multiple Serie A records at the heart of the defence. 8 league titles on the bounce is a stellar achievement and he played a major role in each one of them. He reminded the world that a defender's first job is to defend and he'd probably go down as the best defender's defender of this decade.
Off the field, he is one of the nicest and most educated footballers, as he holds an MBA degree from the University of Turin, showing there are two sides to him. 17 trophies to his name with the Old Lady as well as being named the club's captain after Gianluigi Buffon left the club in 2018 marks a well-deserved end to this decade's defensive torchbearer.
