“Don’t leave me please” ” I am more confident playing with you” – Chelsea star admits as £110,000K-a-week star departure could affect his form
Benoit Badiashile has acknowledged that Thiago Silva will be a “great miss” for Chelsea and that playing with the Brazilian gives him greater confidence as a player.
After spending four years at Stamford Bridge after joining on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain in 2020, Silva will depart the stadium at the end of the current campaign.
Chelsea will be impacted by the 39-year-old’s departure both on and off the field, as he has served as a mentor to many of the team’s younger players.
Badiashile will miss Silva
One such player is Badiashile, who was one of a number of new signings which arrived in January 2023, and he made an impressive start to life in Blue.
The Frenchman arrived from Monaco and instantly looked at home as he slotted into the heart of Chelsea’s defence, and looked a very calm and composed player.
Badiashile picked up a groin injury which ruled him out for a few months at the back end of last season, and has struggled to get back into the side on a regular basis this campaign.
When he was given opportunities he didn’t impress and made a lot of individual errors, not looking anything like the player he was last season.
The former Monaco man is back in the side and has started to look like himself over the last few games, and was part of the defence that recorded back to back clean sheets against Tottenham and West Ham.
The centre back was asked about the improvement in his form, and put it down to his confidence being higher.
“I think my confidence is higher now, I feel like my teammates and the coach trust in me, it helps me a lot”, he told The Evening Standard.
With Silva leaving at the end of the season Badiashile opened up on how the Brazilian has helped him and how he’s more confident playing alongside him.
“Thiago is a great player and we all know how great he is”, Badiashile added.
“It will be a great miss for us but we have to continue to work, that’s life, we have to continue.
“You can see that when I play with him, I am more confident, but I have to try to be the same player without him because he can’t be with me throughout my career.
“He has helped me a lot, but I will try to do my best without him.”