2018 World Cup Team of the Tournament: Silva the sole Brazilian representative

Brazil fell well short of expectations at the 2018 World Cup, crashing out to Belgium in the quarter-finals. The absence of Casemiro was telling against the Red Devils, with Fernandinho doing an awful job of protecting Brazil’s back four in his absence.

Aside from Brazil’s 2-1 defeats at the hands of the bronze medallists, Tite’s side were generally solid at the back. The South American giants kept three clean sheets in five matches, while no side conceded fewer shots on target per game than the Selecao (1.6).

Thiago Silva was particularly impressive for Brazil, even heading home a thunderous header in their final group game against Serbia to score in consecutive World Cup finals.

The Paris Saint-Germain defender was typically efficient in possession, completing 93.6% of his passes. In fact, only John Stones (94.8%) boasted a better pass accuracy of all centre-backs (5+ apps) in Russia.

Silva utilised his statistically calculated strength of ‘concentration’ to ensure he was generally in the right place at the right time, anticipating danger around the Brazil penalty area.

The 33-year-old averaged only conceded two fouls in five appearances, using his positional play to turnover possession more often that not, which helped garner a WhoScored rating of 7.31.