John Terry talks defensive partnerships and the huge boost Thiago Silva has provided Chelsea
Terry says it was a 'smart move' from Lampard signing Silva
If there is one man to ask about improving your defence in football, then you must look no further than Chelsea legend John Terry.
The former England international is an absolute cult hero at Stamford Bridge and he will easily go down as one of the best defenders to ever play the game.
Chelsea's defence was so poor last season, we even heard desperate calls to bring a 39-year old John Terry out of retirement to play at the back for us once again, or at the very least get him in as a defensive coach.
Either would have been great last season to be honest, with Chelsea having the leakiest defence inside the top ten.
The issues were collective and stemmed right through from the goalkeeper to the strikers. There was just a clear lack of organisation, confidence, and the ability to defend as a team.
Terry has been speaking to Sports Gazette and he believes that having a good defensive partnership is very important, as he built up with Ricardo Carvalho at Chelsea.
"As soon as Rickie [Carvalho] came through the door, we just struck up a relationship" said Terry.
"We complemented each other really well.”
“With certain players you just kind of hit it off, and with Rickie I certainly had that. And I knew things were going to go well. Once you play a few games and you train with top players, you realise just how good they are. I knew straight away that we had something very special.”
This season there has been a beautiful defensive partnership building up at Chelsea in the shape of Kurt Zouma and Thiago Silva, and they have completely transformed the back line.
Chelsea currently have the joint best goal difference in the league (+12), which is a total contrast from last season.
The arrival of veteran centre back Silva has made a massive difference at the back, and Terry believes signing him was a very 'smart move' from Lampard.
He said:
“I think with the likes of Thiago Silva coming to Chelsea – he’s one player I’d have loved to have played with.
“It’s so good to have him in and around the football club because the likes of Kurt, Fikayo, Andreas – to have that kind of experienced player, to see what Thiago’s done in the game, to learn from him on a daily basis.
“When I first came through, I had [Marcel] Desailly to guide me through and talk to me – just that communication level is going to serve them so well.
“I hope every defender there is talking to Thiago and learning as much as they can from him – because they certainly look better since he’s been in. It’s a smart move by the owners and a great signing from Frank.”