Chelsea legend responds to Thiago Silva’s benching by Mauricio Pochettino – walexsports.com
Frank Leboeuf asserts that Thiago Silva’s wife’s comments had no influence on Mauricio Pochettino’s decision to leave the player out of Chelsea’s FA Cup match against Aston Villa on Wednesday.
Following Chelsea’s back-to-back Premier League defeats to Wolves and Liverpool, Silva found himself on the bench shortly after his wife seemingly called for Pochettino’s dismissal.
Pochettino insisted that the decision was purely tactical ahead of the 3-1 victory over Villa, a sentiment echoed by Leboeuf.
The former World Cup winner told ESPN FC, “When things go awry, someone becomes a target, and the easiest target is the coach.”
“Players start to criticize the coach, thinking that the decisions and tactics are poor, but you have to be mindful of the noise.”
As for whether Thiago Silva’s wife actually made those comments, I’m uncertain.
“Thiago Silva has been benched before, and it’s not because of his wife’s remarks. It was a strategic move, and he needed a break—he’s 39 years old.
That was the gist of it. I saw Pochettino placing his hand on his shoulder and having a conversation with him as he came on; I didn’t witness any tension between them.
