Tottenham delight as Mauricio Pochettino provides Thiago Silva injury update at Chelsea
Mauricio Pochettino has confirmed that Thiago Silva will be unavailable for the Premier League clash between Tottenham and Chelsea.
Spurs will travel to Stamford Bridge on Thursday (2 May) where the North London side will be looking to avoid their third consecutive defeat.
Following their 3-2 loss to Arsenal at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday (28 April), Ange Postecoglou will know that three points is a must if Spurs are to keep their fading UEFA Champions League hopes alive.
Stamford Bridge has historically not been a happy hunting ground for Tottenham, although they might feel slightly more confident about their chances after an injury update from the Blues.
Pochettino has confirmed that both Silva and Axel Disasi have joined Chelsea’s long list of injuries, which currently features 14 first-team players (Tottenham Hotspur Official Website, 1 May).
And Silva in particular is a big loss for the home side ahead of Thursday night.
Tottenham must take advantage of Thiago Silva’s absence at Chelsea
Silva has been one of European football’s best defenders over the past decade.
He remains arguably Chelea’s best defender, a fact which he proved in the club’s most recent victory.
Starting in the heart of defence during a 6-0 win over Everton (15 April), the 39-year-old completed 94 per cent of his passes, won three of his four aerial duels and made six clearances against the Toffees (Sofascore).
Despite Chelsea falling to a 1-0 defeat in the FA Cup semi-final against Manchester City (20 April), Silva still managed to demonstrate his quality, winning 100 per cent of his ground duels while making five clearances and two tackles.
If anything, the centre-back’s importance has been most apparent when he hasn’t played.
Silva was benched against Arsenal at the Emirates (23 April), with Chelsea thrashed 5-0 by the Gunners.
Ben White’s goal in the 70th minute was the end of the scoring, with Silva’s introduction in the 78th minute preventing the home side from making matters worse as he completed 96 per cent of his passes and won 100 per cent of his aerial duels.
After what happened in North London, Pochettino will certainly be nervous about the prospect of lining up without Silva once again against a Tottenham side who, despite their defensive frailties, certainly know where the back of the net is.
In other Tottenham news, Postecoglou must keep his eye on one Under-18 ace at the club after what he did on Monday.
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