Youthful Chelsea ready for Thiago Silva reunion at Club World Cup

EAST RUTHERFORD, United States: Chelsea’s young side are targeting a place in the final of the Club World Cup when they take on Fluminense in the last four on Tuesday, with the Brazilian team marshalled by former Blues defender Thiago Silva who is still going strong at the age of 40.

Silva was already a veteran when he signed for Chelsea in 2020 before going on to have an impressive four-year stint at Stamford Bridge.

One of the finest center-backs of his generation, Silva arrived after eight years at Paris Saint-Germain and in his first season at Chelsea won the UEFA Champions League.

He played 155 games for the London club and left 12 months ago after helping oversee the development of some of the young talents now featuring regularly under Enzo Maresca.

“He’s a legend of football, a top player,” Marc Cucurella, a teammate of Silva’s for two years, told English media, adding that the two had exchanged messages about their impending reunion.

“We have the opportunity to play against him again and hopefully we can do good things, win this game and play in the final.”

Silva initially made his name at Fluminense, featuring in the team that reached the Copa Libertadores final in 2008 before losing to LDU Quito of Ecuador.

He returned there upon leaving Chelsea, once again pulling on the green, red and white of the Rio de Janeiro outfit who won the Copa Libertadores in 2023.

The evergreen Brazil international was then reunited earlier this year with Renato Gaucho, the coach in 2008 who is now in his sixth spell in charge.

An impressive run at the Club World Cup has seen Fluminense hold Borussia Dortmund in the group stage, eliminate Inter Milan in the last 16 and get the better of Saudi powerhouse Al Hilal in the