First of all, it’s important to mention that we probably would not see any centerback like Thiago Silva anytime soon. That said, Silva will be with Chelsea for at least another year, but it would be naïve and careless not to begin to look for replacements. Silva turns 38-years-old one month after next season begins. This will make him the oldest outfielder in the Premier League, and as good as the Brazilian veteran has been, CFC will have to replace him at some point. It is likely that it would be impossible to replace him considering all he brings to the side, however, Chelsea can get some players that are superb in their own right, and at least bring some of what Silva brings to a side.
Last month we discussed Robin Le Normand, Brendan Chardonnet, and Hiroki Ito as possible replacements for Antonio Rudiger. This time we would be discussing possible replacements for former Paris Saint Germain captain Silva. Brazil’s trustworthy legend is an intelligent player and reads the game excellently. His passing is second to none amongst centerbacks in the Premier League and his calmness in possession helps Chelsea bring the ball out of the defense. Silva has led Chelsea in the volume of passes and long balls throughout his time at Chelsea. A replacement for Thiago Silva would need to embody most of these attributes, including the leadership he brings. Thiago Silva is not fast, but he more than makes up for it with impeccable positioning. Here are some centerbacks that could replace Silva in the coming years:
Chelsea could target Nayef Aguerd (Stade Rennais) Morocco
Aguerd joined Rennes in August 2020. He has been with Ligue 1 club Stade Rennais or Rennes, for two seasons and has made the most appearances at centerback for the club since he joined (66). Aguerd’s reading of the game is clearly top-notch. He had a very good run with Rennes last season, helping them to a fourth-place finish while controlling the fourth-highest average possession in the league.
Aguerd contributed to 10 clean sheets, four less than the centerback with the most clean sheets in the division. No Rennes player contributed to more clean sheets than he did. Rennes had the third-best defense in terms of goals conceded (40)
Aguerd averaged 0.8 interceptions per game and won 73% of his tackles, winning 0.9 tackles per game. His low interception number is no cause for alarm considering the amount of the ball his team controlled relative to other teams in the league. Compared to him, Silva won 74% of his tackles and averaged 1.4 interceptions per game. Aguerd averaged 0.43 blocked per 90 (blocks p90). Rennes with Aguerd at the heart of the defense conceded the second-fewest shots in the league (9.4). They even conceded fewer shots per game than Paris Saint-Germain. Aguerd won 58% of his ground duels per game (1.5) and 65% of his aerial duels (3.1). He stands at 1.88m (6 ft. 2).
Rennes averaged 56.3% possession last season. Aguerd was a big part of that, as he was key to bringing the ball out of the defense. Aguerd averaged the most passes per game for Rennes (63), at an 89% passing accuracy. He also averaged the most long balls per game (5.6) at a 57% long ball accuracy. This shows that Aguerd is very comfortable playing long balls when the need arises. This would be important at Chelsea. Aguerd’s technical ability is obvious in his passing numbers. Unfortunately, he is yet to attain Silva-level calmness but he doesn’t have a discipline problem though, as he has only gathered three yellow cards and one red card in 31 games. Aguerd would be a smart addition to Chelsea’s ranks, as he would not cost a fortune. His contract expires in 2025.
Sven Botman (Lille OSC) France
Botman might be what many call a Rolls-Royce defender. He holds his position and cleans up after everyone. He joined Lille at the beginning of the 2020/21 season. Since then he has made 62 league appearances, with only team captain Jose Fonte making more appearances (73). Lille missed Botman last season as he was out due to injury for 11 out of 38 games. This meant that Botman only made 25 appearances, compared to his previous season of 37. His absence saw Lille go without clean sheets almost every time he wasn’t on the pitch. In fact, Lille only recorded clean sheets twice out of 13 times he did play last season.
Botman averaged one interception per game and won 83% of his tackles, averaging one tackle completed per game. He made 0.9 blocks p90, only Fonte made more. He won 1.7 ground duels per game at a 65% success rate and won 2.3 aerial duels per game at a 66% success rate. Botman ranks in the 92nd percentile for aerials won per game and in the 84th percentile for the percentage of aerials won. This should not be a surprise considering that he is 1.95m (6 ft. 5), though he should be winning a higher proportion of his aerial duels. He kept eight clean sheets in the league.
Botman’s passing is equally as good as that of any ball-playing centerback in Europe. Botman would be no stranger to making plenty of passes per game as he led Lille in passes per game (53.4) at an 88% passing accuracy. Lille was not a possession-based team though, as they averaged 50.8% possession over 38 games. He makes 4.1 long balls per game at a 58% accuracy. His passing is superb. His long ball accuracy is on par with Virgil Van Dijk. Botman even ranks in the 96th percentile in clearances per game amongst Ligue 1 defenders. His ball progression is equally as good, as 5% of passes per game are progressive, with 6% of his carries being progressive.
There’s enough to show that the Frenchman would fit right in at Chelsea. His contract expires in 2025 so Lille still has some bargaining power. His nationality also means that he won’t be cheap.
Milan Skriniar (Inter Milan) Slovakia
Skriniar has just finished what was a successful season with Inter Milan. It is probably not what the Inter hierarchy described as a success though, as Inter fell short of the summit, winning on the final day but still coming in second. Skriniar himself can be proud of a superb individual season. He helped Inter to a second-placed finish, with the second-best defense in the league. Inter conceded the second-fewest goals (32), only one behind the best defense (AC Milan). Inter also lost the joint-fewest games in the league season (4). Skriniar contributed to 12 out of Inter’s 15 clean sheets this season. Skriniar arrived at Inter five years ago and has made 172 league appearances for them, averaging 34.4 appearances per season.
Skriniar was very good last season. He made 31 league appearances and averaged 0.7 interceptions per game and won 71% of his tackles, averaging 1.3 tackles per game. He made 0.89 blocks p90. Skriniar won 2.3 ground duels per game at a 55% success rate. His aerial numbers were poor though, as he won 1.5 aerial duels per game, at a 50% success rate. Skriniar is 1.87m tall (~ 6 ft. 2) and should definitely be winning more aerial duels per game yet he only ranks in the 56th percentile in aerials won per game and in the 28th percentile for the percentage of aerials won.
He was instrumental in helping Inter recycle possession and bring the ball out of the defense. He completed 55.7 passes per game at a 93% success rate. This is identical with Silva’s 93% passing accuracy. He made 3 long balls per game at a 73% accuracy. His long ball accuracy underlines his technical ability. His ball progression needs work though, and is nowhere up to level of Silva’s as just 4% of his passes are progressive, with 6% of his carries being progressive. Skriniar currently plays on the right side of a three-centerback formation but his reading of the game and technical ability suggest he’d do just fine in the center of a back three.
Chelsea may even be able to get Skriniar in a swap deal with reports coming out that Romelu Lukaku is actively looking for a move back to Inter. Skriniar’s contract runs out next year, so Chelsea has some leverage in negotiations as inter would not want to lose the Slovakian in a free transfer. Statistics are courtesy of SofaScore, FBRef and WhoScored. Contract information is courtesy of Transfermarkt.