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Three big questions: Chelsea’s Thiago Silva and the old man role

By Travis Tyler

LE HAVRE, FRANCE - JULY 12: Thiago Silva of PSG during the friendly match between Le Havre and Paris Saint Germain at Stade Oceane on July 12, 2020 in Le Havre, France. (Photo by Jean Catuffe/Getty Images)
LE HAVRE, FRANCE - JULY 12: Thiago Silva of PSG during the friendly match between Le Havre and Paris Saint Germain at Stade Oceane on July 12, 2020 in Le Havre, France. (Photo by Jean Catuffe/Getty Images) /
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LISBON, PORTUGAL – AUGUST 23: Robert Lewandowski of FC Bayern Munich is fouled by Thiago Silva of Paris Saint-Germain during the UEFA Champions League Final match between Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich at Estadio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica on August 23, 2020 in Lisbon, Portugal. (Photo by Lluis Gene/Pool via Getty Images)
LISBON, PORTUGAL – AUGUST 23: Robert Lewandowski of FC Bayern Munich is fouled by Thiago Silva of Paris Saint-Germain during the UEFA Champions League Final match between Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich at Estadio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica on August 23, 2020 in Lisbon, Portugal. (Photo by Lluis Gene/Pool via Getty Images) /

2. Will the initial language barrier affect squad selection?

Silva does not know English. Supposedly he didn’t know French when he joined PSG either but he learned quickly. Regardless, there will be an initial period where Silva will have to communicate with the backline in other ways.

Communication was one of the reasons why he was brought into the club. Frank Lampard has lamented about the lack of communication at the back and the lack of organization that comes with that. Getting a marshal in like Silva was supposed to alleviate that, though it won’t be right away.

What that basically means is that in the short term, Lampard may need to consider the languages spoken at the back to get the best out of Silva. The Brazilian obviously knows Portuguese and he will know French and Italian as well. The teammates that speak similar languages will therefore have a higher chance of playing alongside him.

light. Related Story. Three big questions: Chelsea's Ben Chilwell and combating expectations

This means Cesar Azpilicueta instead of Reece James is likely. Kurt Zouma and Antonio Rudiger (due to his time in Serie A) will also have an advantage over Andreas Christensen and Fikayo Tomori (should he stay for whatever reason). Ben Chilwell will remain the odd man out, but he is sure to start over Marcos Alonso.

Given that Azpilicueta speaks French but not Italian, it may be beneficial for Silva and the captain to have Zouma in instead of Rudiger. That would minimize the back and forth and whatever delay may result. Again, Chilwell will be a bit left out but that is something that will need to be dealt with until Silva learns English.

That would also give a new keeper, such as Edouard Mendy, a leg up over the competition should he join the Blues. For the most part, the Blues are being linked to French speaking keepers so unless Kepa Arrizabalaga picked some up at Athletic Bilbao (which is entirely possible), he will be sitting out.

That is, of course, if this is something Lampard is even considering in his squad selection. Football is a bit of a universal language, but if communication is the issue, then Lampard would not be wrong to account for it when picking his teams.

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