Chelsea have performed poorly this season, but some of their players still appear to be very popular figures in the game.

While Chelsea have struggled, Mauricio Pochettino does have a squad with some superstars in it.

Enzo Fernandez, for example, is a £100m midfielder who has won the World Cup, while Thiago Silva has done practically everything in the sport.

The central defender could now be leaving Chelsea, as his contract runs down, which is a shame. He has been a great servant to the club despite having not even been at Stamford Bridge for that long.

At the rate Cole Palmer is developing, he is another one who may soon have his own fan club around the world. He missed Chelsea’s 5-0 thrashing at the hands of Arsenal and Pochettino does not know when he will be back in a potential blow to the Argentine.

Midfielder urges Chelsea star to join him

Unsurprisingly, Silva has admirers back home in Brazil.

And one of them, Fluminense midfielder Matheus Martinelli, has pleaded for his club to go out and sign him when his £110,000-a-week Chelsea contract (Spotrac) expires.

Speaking to TNT Sports, he said: “Thiago, man, I think, I hope it works out, that he comes to help us. He’s a guy I’m a big fan of, sometimes someone comments there, the guys ask, man, will he really come?

“I really don’t know, I hope our board does everything right, that he comes back, because he’s a guy who, if he comes back to Fluminense, will help a lot.”

Who is Thiago Silva likely to join this summer?

According to the Evening Standard, Silva is open to remaining in the Premier League.

However, Fluminense are interested in signing the Brazilian and they are his boyhood club.

Therefore, as things stand, you would expect him to join them before eventually retiring in his homeland.

Silva turns 40 this year so does not have that much time left in the game. Age has not stopped him from being able to play in the Premier League, though, with the former Paris Saint-Germain captain making 26 appearances this season. So you really have to question whether Chelsea letting the defender go is actually the correct decision.

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