Former Chelsea boss endorses potential move for veteran centre-back to partner Thiago Silva

Few Premier League players can be credited with having quite the same impact as Thiago Silva did last year, with the veteran defender during up Chelsea’s defence to such an extent that they eventually won the Champions League. 

The 36-year-old joined from Paris Saint-Germain after being released by the then-French champions, and had a huge impact on the Blues’ previously shaky defence.

The arrival of Thomas Tuchel in late January also had an undeniable impact on the Blues’ back line, with the German masterminding 13 clean sheets in his first 15 games in charge in South West London.

Now, fresh from the club’s second Champions League triumph, it appears that the Blues could once again be lining up a move for a veteran central defender.

Real Madrid announced this week that defender Sergio Ramos would depart the club after 16 years, prompting speculation that Chelsea might make a move for the Spaniard.

The 35-year-old was controversially left out of Spain boss Luis Enrique’s squad for Euro 2020, with the manager citing an injury and lack of recent playing time.

With talk of the potential deal, former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho, who managed Ramos during his time with Real Madrid, has suggested that Ramos could be a shrewd signing for his former employers.

Talking on TalkSport, the Portuguese said “Look at Thiago Silva. He had a similar situation.”

Ramos won 22 trophies during his time in the Spanish capital

“He came to Chelsea, and in big matches he gave great stability. You can imagine how much he helped the team,” he added.

“I believe Ramos is in a similar situation. He is even more physical than Thiago to cope with the Premier League demands.

“He is very good in the air. I have no doubts that he can play with the intensity and the demands of the Premier League.”

Chelsea sold promising young centre-back Fikayo Tomori to AC Milan this week and Andreas Christensen could potentially be heading to Inter Milan as part of a swap deal for Achraf Hakimi, according to various reports.

This would leave the Blues with only Kurt Zouma, Silva and Antonio Rudiger as natural central defenders, while club captain Cesar Azpilicueta is also capable of playing there.

However, with Tuchel’s use of a back three, they would almost certainly need to recruit in that position if Christensen was to follow Tomori out of the club, and Ramos could be the ideal candidate as a free transfer.