Chelsea legend Alan Hudson believes manager Frank Lampard needs Thiago Silva fit to play as soon as possible after the defeat to Liverpool.
The Blues were not at their best as they lost 2-0 at home to Jurgen Klopp’s side thanks to a quickfire Sadio Mane double in Sunday’s clash at Stamford Bridge.
Hudson was not impressed with the performance of Kurt Zouma, while Andreas Christensen got sent off and Antonio Rudiger was somewhat surprisingly left out of the squad altogether.
Silva joined Chelsea on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain this summer and could be key to helping Lampard’s side tighten up at the back, though it’s also far from ideal for the club to be relying on a player who will turn 36 this month.
“For me, Liverpool showed that they really are on a different level than this Chelsea team, with or without their new recruits,” Hudson told CaughtOffside.
“Frank is always upbeat about his players, saying Zouma was good in defence when he was awful. Frank is far too protective of his players, those who are on big money who should therefore put in big performances. If you watched the Champions League final Chelsea would have been blown away by the ferocity of the pace of the game, whereas Liverpool have the players – Mane was sensational again – to cope.
“Rudiger is a mystery to me. I once felt I would build a defence around him, and then Frank allowed him and Zouma to have too much of the ball, when they should have the least of the ball.
“Rudiger looked a good, strong defender who then thought he was a good footballer. Franz Beckenbauer is a good footballer, not Rudiger.