Thiago Silva has recalled his stunned reaction to former Chelsea boss Frank Lampard entrusting him to captain the club in only his second match for the Blues.
Chelsea signed Thiago on a one-year deal with the option of another after his contract with Paris Saint-Germain expired, just days after the club’s Champions League final defeat by Bayern Munich.
The experienced centre-back made his debut for Chelsea in the EFL Cup as the south-west London club ran riot in a 6-0 win over Barnsley.
Thiago made his Premier League debut against West Brom just three days later at the Hawthorns, and the centre-back was handed the armband for the occasion.
(Image: Pool via REUTERS)
“It was a huge surprise,” Thiago told FourFourTwo.
The first two captains, Azpi [Cesar Azpilicueta] and Jorginho, were substitutes in that game against West Brom, and Frank didn’t even ask me anything – he just gave me the armband and said, ‘This is yours today.’
“My reaction was like, ‘Bloody hell!’ Straight after the game, I made a point of talking to both Azpi and Jorginho, saying I joined Chelsea to help the squad regardless of being captain or not.
“In football, situations like that can end up in envy, but it’s not the armband that will make me better or worse.”
The game was one to forget for Thiago though, as the defender made a costly error that directly resulted in a West Brom goal.
