Chelsea veteran Thiago Silva claims to have a top relationship with club captain and team-mate Reece James, who issued a public apology earlier this week for being sent off in the 4-1 defeat to Newcastle United. Mauricio Pochettino was fuming with his side’s performance at St James’ Park, which left them clinging onto the top half of the Premier League table.
James has struggled to remain fit over the last two seasons, with persistent hamstring and knee trouble stunting his momentum at Stamford Bridge. The right-back has only once started three consecutive Premier League matches since 2021.
A home fixture against Brighton this coming Sunday would have been his fourth on the trot, but James picked up two yellow cards against the Magpies to rule him out through suspension.
After the heavy defeat, he issued the following apology to Pochettino and his team-mates: “I take full responsibility for my red card today, two silly mistakes. Another lesson for me to learn. I’d like to apologise to the fans and my team-mates.
“The performance today was far below our standards but this game does not define us! We’ve made huge improvements this season against many top teams. We’ll be back next weekend.”
Pochettino will surely be desperate to see more from the player he appointed captain at the start of the season. James is tasked with leading a group of star-studded Chelsea stars, including former AC Milan and Paris Saint-Germain defender Silva, a player 16 years his senior.
“What we want to do is speed up the process of understanding and I think the players we have here are generally good at that.”
Silva was similarly supportive of James in response to his social media apology, under which he commented: “I love you my capi. We go again.”
