Ana night in Fortaleza, footballer Thiago Silva bestowed happiness on his country’s fans, and he stole it from them. It was the quarterfinals of the 2014 World Cup, Brazil played against Colombia. In the stadium – according to those who were there at the time – you could see and feel how Silva, the captain of the national team, carried the people away. In the first half he made it 1-0. But in the second half – we now know that – probably the stupidest mistake of his football life.
He was in for a corner kick in the Colombians’ penalty area when keeper David Ospina attempted to counterattack. Silva spontaneously got in the way, Ospina couldn’t shoot the ball – and the referee didn’t let the card stick: Yellow for Silva. It was clear that the player who commanded the Seleção’s defense would be suspended in the semi-final against Germany.
So came July 8, 2014. So came the commandless game at Mineirão Stadium in Belo Horizonte. So came the great misfortune.
It has been debated ever since how a foul in the quarterfinals had a crucial impact in the semifinals. Most of the time, however, it is not the foul committed by the Brazilian Silva that is referred to, but that of the Colombian Juan Zúñiga. In the 87th minute he jumped in the back of striker Neymar so that he was temporarily unable to walk. The diagnosis: fracture of the third lumbar vertebra. The result: WM-Aus. But even if it is one of the great achievements in sporting history, how the 22-year-old Neymar played with the burden of the country on his shoulders that summer, one had to diagnose from a sporting point of view: It was not Neymar who urgently missed the semi-finals, but Thiago Silva.
Even at the age of 38 still set
On this Monday evening (5:00 p.m. CET in the FAZ live ticker for the soccer World Cup, on ARD and on MagentaTV), when Brazil plays against Switzerland in Doha, Neymar will be absent due to an ankle injury. So the focus will be on those who should take care of the spectacle in his place. For example, striker Richarlison (Tottenham Hotspur), who scored perhaps the best goal of the tournament with his side kick in the 2-0 win against Serbia. Or the strikers Rodrygo and Vinicius Junior (Real Madrid), who reached the top of the sport at the age of 21 and 22 respectively.
And yet one should shift the focus if one wants to see why Brazil could become world champions this winter. Namely, in the defensive midfield. Where Casemiro plays, probably the most important man for the balance of the Brazilian team. And in central defence. Where Thiago Silva plays, the commander, the captain.
In September he was 38 years old – and still set under the national coach Tite. He knows the trend that everyone knows: in the world champion teams since 2006 there is at least one world-class central defender. The Italians had Fabio Cannavaro in 2006. The Spaniards had Carlos Puyol and Gerard Piqué in 2010 (and, by the way, at full-back Sergio Ramos). The Germans had Jérôme Boateng in 2014. The French had Raphaël Varane in 2018. And in 2022, the Brazilians have Thiago Silva, whom Rory Smith, the shrewd football correspondent for The New York Times, recently called the “greatest defender of his generation.”
Thomas Tuchel is someone who particularly appreciates him. As coach of Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea, he made it to the Champions League final with Thiago Silva as chief of defense in 2020 (0-1 defeat) and 2021 (1-0 win). His nickname for him: “Thiago Button”. Because of Benjamin Button, the character from F. Scott Fitzgerald’s short story, who ages backwards. “I know how hard he tries to stay fit, how much he cares about his recovery, his sleep and his diet,” said Tuchel when he was still a trainer in London. “It’s just outstanding and that’s the only reason it’s possible.”
It is possible that he can maintain this level of performance. It is possible that he will command the defense of a national team that will become world champions. It’s possible that he’s the man in Brazil who can’t be missed.
