The 41-year-old Silva shines in the Club World Cup, surpassing the five major leagues, and is still the top defender!

In the eighth final of this Club World Cup, there were constant upsets. The most eye-catching thing was that Fruminense defeated Inter Milan 2-0, continuing to demonstrate the strong strength of the Brazilian team. In this game, Thiago Silva, who is nearly 41 years old, is undoubtedly the key figure in the team's victory and serves as the mainstay of Fruminense's defense. Although he has bid farewell to the top European leagues, Silva, who has returned to Brazil to play football, is still a representative figure of world-class defenders.

The core of the defense line is still not reduced, and the front is still not inferior. In this Club World Cup, Fruminense's defense has shown an extremely high level. After four games, the team has completed three clean sheets, with the only two conceded in the showdown against Ulsan Hyundai, but Fruminense won 4-2. In the first group stage game against Dortmund, Silva's performance was perfect. Not only did he complete the most 8 top-ups in the game, he also had 7 clearances and 3 interceptions, and all three data were the best in the game. Although Dortmund once created some threats, the defense line led by Silva never gave his opponent too many opportunities.

In the game against Ulsan Hyundai, Silva still showed his usual stability despite Fruminense losing two goals. He completed 8 clearances in this game and was still the best player in the game. He also contributed 78 precise passes and 4 long passes, showing his outstanding effort. Silva's defense coverage is extremely wide, covering almost the entire game's defense line and midfield, making Ulsan Hyundai's offense seem helpless.

The match with Mamerodi at sunset, Silva rested, and in the key showdown with Inter Milan, he once again took the lead. Fruminense adjusted his formation in this game, using the three central defenders to set up the formation, while Silva played the core role of the central defenders, and his defensive tasks were mainly concentrated in front of the penalty area of ​​the team. In this game, he contributed 7 clearances, 3 steals and 3 ground tops, especially when facing Inter Milan's forwards, his defensive performance is crucial. After the game, Silva expressed emotionally in an interview: "I believe that Milan fans will love this game. I want to dedicate the victory to them. I think about them throughout the game." As a legendary player who once played for AC Milan, although Silva has left Milan for many years, he still has deep feelings for this team. The Brazilian football veteran returns and still shines. Fruminense is Silva's youth training parent team, but he failed to gain a foothold here in the early days. After playing for many teams including Juventus, Porto, Dynamo Moscow, Silva returned to Fruminense in 2006, and then signed a contract with AC Milan, officially starting the journey of European giants. During his three years in Milan, eight years at Paris Saint-Germain and four years at Chelsea, Silva has overcome all obstacles in the top European courts and is still active in the Premier League until she was 40 years old. In the 2023-2024 season, he made 31 appearances, contributed 3 goals and 1 assist, showing his super competitive state.

However, as he grew older, Silva finally chose to return to Brazilian football. In July 2024, he returned to Fruminense on a free transfer. Shortly after his return, Silva played three consecutive games, helping the team achieve a clean sheet and leading Fruminense to three consecutive victories. In the second leg of the knockout round against Gremio in the Cup of Libertadoes, he helped the team reverse and advance to the quarterfinals with a key goal. Although he was absent for a while due to injury, Silva is still an important pillar of Fruminense's defense after each comeback. Although Fruminense ranked only 13th in the 2024 season in the Brazilian League, Silva's stable performance has been widely recognized. His performance is also unimaginable, a player who is already in his late career. Can

be able to put on the national team again?

Silva announced his withdrawal from the Brazilian national team since the 2022 World Cup, which also made him missed the dream of winning the World Cup. Silva has served as the Brazilian team's defensive leader for a long time. From 2014 to 2022, he participated in the World Cup three times and contributed wonderful performances to the national team many times. However, in the quarterfinals of the Brazilian World Cup in 2014, due to Silva's suspension, the Brazilian team suffered a 1-7 defeat that shocked the world in the absence of core defenders, which is also the closest Silva is to the World Cup championship. In the 2022 World Cup, Brazil once again ended in the quarter-finals, and Silva's national team career came to an end.

Despite this, Brazil's current defense still appears to be relatively weak. In the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, Brazil has lost 5 games, conceded 16 goals, and suffered a 1-4 defeat against Argentina. This may mean that Brazil does need veterans like Silva to play the leading role in the upcoming World Cup. With the wonderful performance of the Club World Cup, whether Silva will return to the national team and continue to be a hot topic for fans and the media.

The 2026 World Cup will be held in North America soon. Whether Silva will join hands with the Brazilian national team again to fight to regain the Hercules Cup has become an unsolved question.