Roberto Carlos has lifted the World Cup trophy, so he knows the secret to success inside out. At the club level, he has also won all the honours there are to win, including the UEFA Champions League more than once. The 52-year-old is already a legend of FIFA and UEFA, so his words carry great weight.
His comments on Thiago Silva to reporters are particularly striking.
"He had a fantastic season at Fluminense, and coming to play in Portugal to join Porto is definitely a wise choice," Roberto Carlos said at the Estádio do Dragão, on the sidelines of the World Cup Trophy Tour, which marked the first time the trophy has been brought to Portugal in World Cup history.
Talking about this year's World Cup, the former full-back has no doubt that the 41-year-old Porto centre-back Thiago Silva is fully worthy of a place in Carlo Ancelotti's Brazil national team squad.
“Thiago Silva is still playing at an extremely high level. Let's see if he can return to the national team, because he is an outstanding and experienced player. It would certainly be a good thing if he can make a comeback.”
"I'm not talking about ending his career, because he takes excellent care of himself and can definitely play for a long time to come. But if Thiago can return to the national team, it's absolutely not bad news," he concluded.
Porto holds an option to extend Thiago Silva's contract until 2027.
Thiago Silva signed a six-month contract with Porto, with an option to renew for an additional year.
Sources revealed that Porto has the right to activate this clause to extend the experienced centre-back's contract until 2027. Considering that Thiago Silva joined Porto with the original intention of proving his ability to secure a place in the Brazil national team and fight for a spot in the World Cup squad, the final decision is still up in the air.
